


Music of the Night

by DreamyDemaury



Category: SKAM (France)
Genre: Eventual Smut, F/M, M/M, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-25
Updated: 2019-10-12
Packaged: 2020-05-19 19:52:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 27,749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19363222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DreamyDemaury/pseuds/DreamyDemaury
Summary: Daphné has the bright idea to host a school play of the Phantom of the Opera. Chaos and romance ensue, with the Phantom and Raoul becoming a little closer than intended.





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know if there's a Phantom of the Opera AU already out there, but every fandom has one! Here's my version, hope you all like it! Comments and kudos are always appreciated!  
> Tumblr: dreamydemaury

Lucas sits in the foyer, surrounded by Yann, Arthur, and Basile, regretting his life choices. Daphné has gotten into her head the next big “family” project and, needless to say, Lucas is not a fan.

Daphné claps her hands and exclaims, “Okay! So I’ve decided that us students need a greater sense of community and family, and what better way to do that than through performing a play? “

Out of the corner of his eye, Lucas sees Arthur and Yann exchange smirks. Basile, as always, just looks lovestruck. Daphné continues, “The Principal has agreed to let us use the foyer and has even provided a small amount of funds for costumes and equipment! Also, as an incentive, he has agreed to let participation in the play count as the arts course requirement!”

Lucas sees many of the students sit a bit straighter at this. Normally the arts requirement was fulfilled by taking either a painting or cinema class, both of which were taught by Monsieur Robart, a stern, elderly man who had a reputation for failing at least half of his students every year. The chance to skip out on his classes was an interesting prospect, to say the least.

Daphné smiles and says, “So after much consideration between us girls,” gesturing towards Alexia, Imane, Emma, and Manon, “we’ve decided that what better play to perform than one rooted in Parisian history? The play that we’ll put on this year is none other than the Phantom of the Opera!”

Whispers of excitement go around the room, and Daphné continues, encouraged by the response. “We’ll hold auditions here in foyer tomorrow after classes, and everyone, regardless of singing or acting ability, is encouraged to try out! There will also be positions open for those that wish to help with production and technical aspects of the performance.”

Alexia steps in and says, “if you’re interested in trying out, a piece of paper is going around now for you to write your names on.”

Yann leans over to Lucas and mutters, “Are we doing this?”

Basile interrupts with a hissed, “Yes, of course we are! This is my one chance to prove myself to Daphné!”

Yann rolls his eyes and continues, “What do you think, Lucas? Personally, I don’t want to be stuck with Monsieur Robart. And we could just be a part of the production crew?”

Lucas thinks for a second, that is true, and he can’t really afford to fail any classes.

“Sure,” he responds, “but _only_ the production crew. There’s no way in hell I’m singing.”

Basile lets out an excited whoop, rushing out of his seat to greet Daphné, no doubt to pester her about helping out. Arthur shakes his head exasperatedly before reaching for the audition paper. “I’ll just write all our names down next to production crew, yeah?” Lucas and Yann nod.

“Well,” starts Yann, “it should be interesting, right?” Lucas hums in agreement, unaware of just how interesting this was going to get.

* * *

This is boring, Lucas thinks. Auditions had been going fairly smoothly, the group quickly deciding that Manon fit the role of Christine Daaé, the female lead, the best. Her voice was steady and warm, and she acted out Christine’s sad backstory with astonishing realism. Alexia was to play Meg Giry, Christine’s bubbly and sweet friend, while Imane was casted as her mother, Madame Giry, the stern and respected ballet instructor of the opera.

The group then casted Chloé as Carlotta, the rather shrill and demanding Prima Donna that competed with Christine. Lucas thought the role suited her, honestly. Lastly, the opera directors André and Firmin were filled by Yann and Basile. Daphne forced them two to try out (Basile needed very little convincing), and the group decided they were a hilarious duo. Lucas looked at Yann, betrayed for leaving him to join the cast, to which Yann shrugged and mouthed a “sorry.”

The biggest problem the group was having now was finding Raoul, the wealthy love interest of Christine and the Phantom’s competition. Raoul was supposed to be a handsome character with a gentle voice and warm demeanor, but so far, none of the boys who auditioned fit the bill. Lucas was playing on his phone, bored with how long this was all taking, when he hears Daphné nervously pipe, “Lucas? Would you please come up here and sing a few lines?”

Lucas shoots his head up so fast, he thought he heard his neck crack. “Um. I’m on the production team, I thought? I, uh, really can’t sing Daphné.”

Daphné continues undeterred, “Well, just let us be the judge of that, yeah? Just a few lines, please, Lucas. Please?”

Lucas hesitates as he feels the whole room’s eyes on him, before slowly pocketing his phone and making his way to the front of the room. “Just these couple of lines, please Lucas, whenever you’re ready,” Daphné says, shoving the lyrics to ‘All I Ask of You’ into Lucas’s hands.

Manon stands opposite of him, planning to sing Christine’s parts, and gives him an encouraging smile. Lucas takes a deep breath and sings, “ _No more talk of darkness, forget these wide-eyed fears. I’m here…”_

* * *

Lucas is sitting in the back of the room now sulking, Yann and Arthur teasing him. “Who knew you could sing so well Lucas? Or should we say Raoul?”

After Lucas sang, Daphne shrieked that he was perfect for the role, and adamantly refused Lucas to work on production, saying it would be a waste of talent. The gang, the stupid friends that they were, Lucas thought furiously, backed Daphné whole-heartedly, saying Lucas had to do the role. So due to peer-pressure, Lucas was now one the male leads.

Another two hours had passed, the rest of the roles being easily distributed. The group was now faced with the biggest problem of all: the Phantom. The Phantom had to be older, mysterious, and of course, have a voice that could hypnotize. None of the first and second year boys had these qualities, most of them being simply not intimidating enough to play such a dark role.

Daphné was growing increasingly frustrated with the lack of progress, turning to Emma to desperately ask, “Do you think Alex would work? Or maybe one of his third year friends?”

Emma sends a quick text to Alex, while Alexia and Imane try to calm Daphné down. Alex shows up in the foyer less than thirty minutes later, two guys in tow. Yann nudges Lucas to look up from his phone, who promptly almost drops it. One of Alex’s friends Lucas vaguely remembers meeting, probably when he was too high to function at some party. The other guy, however, Lucas had never seen before, and he certainly would’ve remembered this face. He was tall and lanky, with wild chestnut-colored hair and sharp facial features. His eyes though, were what caught Lucas off-guard. Even though the whole room was looking at him, the guy’s eyes flicked directly to Lucas, the gray-blue irises staring minutely before darting away. Daphné rushes to Alex and his friends, speaking lowly and quickly to them.

Alex then shoves the god-like boy toward the front. Lucas finds himself holding his breath as the unknown boy stands up front, shoulders hunched, Manon shuffling hesitantly to stand beside him at Daphné’s request. Daphné gives them the lyrics for Phantom’s main song ‘Music of the Night’ and directs Emma to turn on the music. Lucas shivers as the first deep notes pour through. Manon gets into character, turning into the curious and unsure Christine, but the greatest change was in the blue-eyed boy. He straightens his shoulders and stands to his full height, looking tall and imposing. Gone was the nervous sort of air he carried when he first walked in the foyer, and instead there was something intense and mysterious in his aura…almost dangerous, Lucas thinks. He then opens his mouth to sing, and Lucas feels as though lightning struck him. The voice isn’t overly deep, but it’s masculine and smooth, holding commanding undertones that makes Lucas squirm in ways he’s unwilling to think about right now.

The boy’s long arms lead Manon this way and that as he sings, Manon looking hypnotized. Lucas wasn’t entirely sure that Manon was still acting. Daphné eventually directs Emma to stop the music and the boy stops singing immediately, turning back into his hunched self as he moves back to stand next to Alex.

Daphné claps delightedly, saying, “Well I think we’ve found our Phantom, haven’t we?” She’s met with stunned murmurs of agreement, most people very impressed with the performance.

“That’s all for tonight everyone! We’ll see the cast and crew next Monday after classes for our first rehearsal, and have a great weekend!” People begin to make their way out of the foyer and Lucas loses sight of the mysterious boy immediately. He waves goodbye to the gang and makes his way to the coloc in a daze. He falls asleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow, and if he dreams of gray-blue eyes and a soothing voice, well, only he would know.

_“Open up your mind, let your fantasies unwind…In this darkness that you know you cannot fight… The darkness of the music of the night.”_


	2. Rehearsals

By the time Monday came around, Lucas had already forgotten that he was one of the leads in the play. The weekend had been rough, as he struggled to finish the massive amounts of biology homework they had been assigned, and his mother had sent several cryptic texts in a row telling him to protect his soul from oncoming darkness. Furthermore, he was late yet again with the rent, Mika harping on it not so subtly. Lucas feels his mood sour when he remembers how Mika’s typical approach to asking him for anything starts with a drawn-out, explicit rendition of Mika’s conquests of the previous night before hinting that Lucas needs to get out there and “get some.” Lucas rather regrets coming out to his roommates sometimes; Manon was fine, but Mika and Lisa really tease him past his limits on occasion.

Lucas is reviewing his biology homework, trying to correct mistakes before class starts when Imane sits down and startles him when she slams her books on the table.

“Imane, what the hell?” Lucas erases the big pencil mark he made when he jumped.

“So, how do you feel about being the new love interest?”

Lucas looks up in confusion, “What?”

Rolling her eyes, Imane clarifies, “Raoul? You know, the play we’re all doing? Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten Daphné’s idea already.” Her eyes narrow a bit at this. “Or have changed your mind.”

Lucas huffs, “I haven’t changed my mind.” “

"It’s stupid though,” he mutters lowly.

“What was that?”

“Nothing.”

They sit for a few minutes in silence before Lucas speaks up again, hesitantly. “So…uh. Who’s the guy playing the Phantom?”

Imane looks suspiciously at Lucas, and he hurriedly adds, “No reason or anything. Just he must be new and all, since I’ve never seen him before. And it would be good to know him anyway, you know, for the play. My character interacts quite a bit with the Phantom right?”

Great, he’s rambling. Imane relaxes a bit and answers, “His name is Eliott. He’s a transfer and a third year.”

Lucas lets out an “oh” before the professor walks in, effectively shutting all the students up.

When the bells rings at the end of class, Imane tells him before leaving, “Don’t be late for rehearsals!” Lucas gathers his things, ignoring the little flutters he feels at the thought of seeing the mysterious boy again. _Eliott_.

* * *

 

Lucas quickly finds the gang in the foyer, sitting with them. The place already looks different with a makeshift stage at the front of the room and small props littering the corners.

Daphné rushes up to Lucas and grabs the edge of his hoodie, dragging him to the opposite side of the room. “Lucas, you and Manon are going to practice the ‘All I Ask of You’ scene today. But first, meet Eliott! Eliott, Lucas. Lucas, Eliott.”

Lucas suddenly finds himself face to face with Eliott, taking a startled step back at their proximity. _Why is he even better looking up close?_

“Hey, I’m Lucas. It’s nice to meet you.” Lucas is proud that he doesn’t stutter.

Eliott, without making eye contact, mutters “hey” before walking off, settling next to Alex.

Wow. Okay. _Rude._

Lucas feels a bit stung by the dismissal, not quite sure how he’s supposed to respond to that. Daphné pays no mind, cheerily directing him and Manon on certain aspects of the scene. Lucas reads through the lines, distracted, glancing every now again at where Eliott crouches, looking at a script.

“Okay, so you both don’t have to do the kiss today. Just wanted to focus on the singing parts-well done! Lucas, go join Yann, Basile, and Chloé to work on the Prima Donna scene. Manon, come with me, we’re going to work out some things for the Phantom’s lair scene.”

Lucas watches as Daphné brings Manon over to Eliott, trying not to feel hurt when he greets her enthusiastically.

* * *

 

Lucas lay in bed that night exhausted and throat sore. He had only worked on two scenes today, but felt as if he had run through the whole play. Chloé would not stop flirting with him during the Prima Donna scene, and the guys were useless, simply giving him smirks and thumbs up behind her back.

He could’ve sworn he saw Eliott glance their way a couple times, but every time he looked back, Eliott was deeply engrossed in the script with Manon, their heads close together. Lucas gritted his teeth, unsure why he was so irritated, before going back to the complex scene they were working on. Lucas had stomped out of the school as soon as rehearsals were over, feeling only slightly guilty that he didn’t wait for Manon.

* * *

 

Tuesday had Lucas determined. If Eliott didn’t like him, well that was just fine. Probably was great, even. It would fuel the hate he was supposed to feel as Raoul for the Phantom, right?

He steps into the foyer, seeing Emma and Arthur setting up props and laying down staging tape. Everyone else seems to already be there, but as Lucas scans his eyes over the group, he doesn’t see Eliott’s messy head of hair. Disgruntled that he was even looking for him, Lucas finds Yann and Basile and focuses again on the Prima Donna scene.

Eliott didn’t show up Wednesday, either. They all had the day off on Thursday, but when Friday came around, Eliott was still nowhere to be seen. Lucas thought this was weird because isn’t he supposed to be the lead? Feeling particularly malicious, he wonders why Eliott would even join such a thing if he deems it so beneath him to not even show up.

He walks over to Daphné and asks, “So where’s our Phantom? Seems a bit difficult to get anything done without the lead.”

“Oh! He says he works better alone, he does some sort of method technique to get in the right frame of mind,” she says cheerily.

“Hmpf.” _Method my ass, he probably just doesn’t want to be here_. “Right, well, I’ll just be working over here then.”

Lucas actually has a good time with Yann and Basile, laughing as they sing through Prima Donna. Not even Chloé’s advances could dampen his mood.

“Hey,” Chloé says as everyone begins to pack up and go home for the evening, “Maria and I are having a party tonight if you guys would like to come.”

She directed this to all of the gang, but her eyes were fixed hopefully on Lucas. “Oh uh…we might have plans-” 

"No, we’ll be there! We’ll bring the beers too,” Arthur interrupts, shooting Lucas a _dude, why are you being weird_ look.

“Cool! Lucas, I’ll text you the address?”

“Uh sure,” he responds, reluctantly giving her his phone number. She smiles widely and waves as she leaves with Maria, giggling as soon as they were out of earshot.

* * *

 

Lucas shouldn’t have gone out, he thinks. Chloé’s house is crowded, people already drunk by the time he and the gang get there. He thinks he sees a little too much of one couple, not well hidden by the couch they were behind.

“I’m going to get a drink,” he says, heading to the kitchen where it was little less crowded. This was a mistake, as Chloé corners him in there and Lucas is forced to make conversation, trying to ignore her batting eyelashes and the way she moves a little bit closer every time she laughs at something he says.

He feels the hair on the back of his neck stand on end and looks back, only to find blue-gray eyes staring directly at him. Lucas sees that Eliott is with a pretty girl, his arm wrapped loosely around her shoulders. He’s still staring unerringly at Lucas, however, face unreadable.

Lucas, feeling weirded out by the attention, turns back to Chloé, blinking at how close she’s gotten. Lucas forces a small smile and steps back a bit, pretending to look for another beer. As he reaches for one, another hand does also, and Lucas’s fingers brush against the stranger’s. He hears a sharp inhale, almost too quiet to be heard, and whips his head around to find Eliott standing right there.

Lucas glances up and then quickly down to avoid looking into Eliott’s intense gaze. He notices Eliott’s hand, which he had brushed against, was clenched into a fist, knuckles white. Feeling rage boil up, Lucas snaps out a sorry and rushes out of the kitchen, not looking back at either Chloé or Eliott.

Lucas lets the guys know that he’s headed home, suddenly too tired to deal with all of this. When he makes it home, the coloc is quiet. Mika likely is out somewhere and Lisa is probably asleep; he has no idea where Manon is. Lucas strips down to his boxers and climbs into the bed, feeling some of the previous anger come back as he remembers Eliott’s response to him brushing his hand. Is Lucas just _that_ disgusting for Eliott to not acknowledge and bunch up his hand as though burned? Lucas turns over with a huff, and resolutely decides that he’s not going to think about Eliott and his stupid eyes any longer.

That night, he dreams of a candle-lit dungeon and soft whispers into his ears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos are greatly appreciated!


	3. Weird

Lucas finds himself dreading Monday and the rehearsals. When he walks into the foyer after his last class of the day, it’s with his fingers crossed that Eliott would pull another disappearing act and not show up.

No such luck. Lucas spots the messy head of hair across the room next to Manon’s. Once again, the two of them were deep in conversation, oblivious to the rest of the group.

“Lucas!” Daphné comes running up to him, scripts and costumes overflowing her arms.

“Let me help with those, Daphné,” Lucas says, grabbing the scripts from her.

“Thanks, Lucas. There’s actually not that much for you to do right now, since Yann and Basile are working on another scene and Manon is going to practice some of her solos today.”

“That’s fine, I’ll just read over my lines a little more until the guys are ready.” Lucas sits on the floor in the corner of the room and reads over the script for a bit before becoming bored and fishing out his phone.

He was scrolling through Instagram when a shadow looms over him. Darting his head up, he sees Eliott lingering, body language clearly awkward. Lucas stares at him confusedly before Eliott says, “Daphné wants us to discuss the finale scene.”

“Manon is busy with other scenes today though,” Lucas replies, feeling uneasy.

“….Right, well, we could just discuss the Phantom’s and Raoul’s lines.” Without further ado, Eliott plops down on the floor next to Lucas and flips his script to the finale scene.

Lucas knows he’s staring but it’s weird that Eliott, who normally avoids Lucas like the plague, is suddenly wanting to discuss scenes together. Eliott looks up and says, “Well, what do you think?”

“What do I think of what?”

Eliott huffs a laugh. “Of the finale? Where do you want to start?”

“I dunno. The beginning I guess.”

He and Eliott start reading through the lines mechanically, before Lucas scoffs, “It doesn’t make sense.”

“What doesn’t make sense,” Eliott says questioningly.

“The whole thing! Why does the Phantom take Christine to his lair, knowing that people are likely to look for her? What’s the point of forcing her to choose between him and Raoul, especially after just being kidnapped and brought to some dungeon?”

Eliott is quiet for a minute. “He brings her to his lair because it’s his home and he wants to show it to her.”

“But why there? He’s got to know that she’d find it, I dunno, dark and creepy?” Lucas interrupts.

“It’s his _home_ ,” Eliott says imploringly, now looking Lucas fully in the eye. “He feels comfortable in the dark and he wants to share it with the person he loves.”

“He loves her? Hmpf he’s got a weird way of showing it, since he, you know, kidnapped her and all,” Lucas retorts, rolling his eyes.

“It might be weird, yes, but the Phantom is lonely, and Christine brings him so much light. It’s only natural that he would want to share an intimate part of himself with her…love makes you do strange things,” Eliott finishes, an undefinable look in his eyes.

Lucas doesn’t know how to respond to this, deciding to look back down at his script. “Fine,” he acquiesces, “he loves her. Why make her choose between him and Raoul though?”

“In the end he doesn’t, you see?” Eliott shifts closer to point at the passage on Lucas’s script. “He realizes that he truly loves her and knows that he’s not the right choice-that his darkness wouldn’t be good for her. So he lets her and Raoul go.”

Eliott is sitting very close to Lucas now, their thighs brushing. Lucas thinks he can smell something woodsy from Eliott. _He smells good._

“Hey, man it’s time to go,” Alex says, having appeared suddenly.

Eliott jumps, startled, before standing up and brushing his jeans off. “Yeah, sorry, lost track of time.”

His eyes flit to Lucas once more before quickly leaving.

“Hey, wait you forgot!-“ Lucas calls out, but Eliott is already out the door. Lucas picks up Eliott’s forgotten script, _Eliott Demaury_ written on the front of it. Lucas huffs and grabs it, but a small scrap of paper slips out.

Lucas bends down to pick it up, seeing all that’s on it is a drawing of a little hedgehog and small heart next to it.

* * *

 

Daphné is truly insane, Lucas thinks. It is now Friday, and the past three weeks of rehearsals have just been reciting lines and singing their parts. Now Daphné stands in front of the group on the makeshift stage, introducing the handsome boy next to her.

“This is Sofiane,” she gestures toward him. “He’s very graciously offered to help with the choreography of the musical numbers!”

Lucas is sitting next to Imane, and he thinks he feels her tense up at this.

“So everyone get in the mood to dance _and_ put on your costumes because now we’re going to really focus on pulling the musical scenes together!” Daphné ignores the groans that go around, simply flitting about the room to direct different sequences.

Lucas is dancing the Masquerade scene with Manon, trying not to comment on how tired she looks. She gives him a small grin as they get into their places, and Lucas decides that when they get back to the coloc, he’s going to stop being a bad friend and ask her what’s wrong. Lately he’d been ignoring her, too irritated by her easy friendship with Eliott.

They pull on their costumes and masks and begin _. Masquerade! Look around, there’s another mask behind you._

* * *

 

An hour later, and they were still going at it. Lucas wipes the sweat that’s gathered at his temples and pulls at the rather uncomfortably tight trousers and flowy white top that Daphné forced him wear. She and Emma squealed when he had walked out of the dressing room.  He briefly wonders how Sofiane, who’s been teaching dance steps non-stop, looks unruffled.

They’re finishing up the song, getting ready for the Phantom’s part. Emma, who was in control of the lighting, had dimmed the lights and placed red-colored fabric on lamps, casting the room in a sultry glow.

 _Masquerade! Take your fill, let the spectacle astound you!_ The group’s voices fade out as the music changes, a dark, dramatic pulse that makes goosebumps rise on Lucas’s skin.

 _Why so silent, good Messieurs?_ Eliott’s, or Lucas should say the Phantom’s, voice seeps out. The line is sung no louder than a menacing whisper.

Lucas whips his head around, eyes widening as he sees Eliott-no the Phantom-stalking toward him and Manon. Half of his face is covered by an ornate mask. _Did you think that I had left you for good?_

Eliott stands in the middle of the room now, surrounded. He stands tall, jaw clenched, and sharp eyes wandering over the room. He continues to address the opera owners Firmin and André before addressing Christine.

He sings, _If pride will let her return to me, her teacher…_ He had not looked at Lucas once during this scene, but Lucas couldn’t look away from Eliott’s commanding presence.

For half a second, it was so quick, Lucas swears blue-gray eyes flick to his own bright blue ones and feels unable to breathe.

Eliott growls, “Your chains are still mine, you belong to me!” Lucas feels his lower stomach tighten in a way that he was _definitely_ going to ignore right now. Eliott then pretends to yank a necklace from Manon’s neck before whipping around to walk away.

* * *

 

Practice ended late that night, but people were satisfied with their progress on the singing and dancing, thanking Sofiane profusely for his help. Lucas thought he saw Imane look at Sofiane several times over the course of the evening. Looks that Sofiane reciprocated. He’ll have to ask her about that in biology.

Now back at home though, Lucas is going to talk to Manon. She’s been very absent-minded lately, dark circles a constant companion. Lucas doesn’t have to find Manon, however, as she joins him on the couch in the living room. Lucas feels at a loss for words when he sees tears in her eyes. But eventually he asks, “what’s wrong, Manon?”

Manon is silent for a bit, staring vacantly at whatever show was playing on the television. “Have you ever liked someone that you know you shouldn’t?” She finally asks.

Lucas feels a jolt in his chest, but doesn’t respond.

“Because,” she continues, “there is someone that I like…but we’re wrong for each other. We get along so well when we’re together, but he has a girlfriend and I don’t know what to do.”

Lucas’s mind jumps to Eliott, feeling as though he’s putting puzzle pieces together. Eliott and Manon had been awfully close in rehearsals…

“Anyway,” she says, startling Lucas out of his reverie. “I know nothing will come of it, even though I can’t seem to get over how I feel for him.”

Lucas stares at her dejectedly now, seeing that even when exhausted and her hair mussed, Manon was so pretty. He felt there was no way he could compare, especially in Eliott’s eyes…

He shakes himself out of these self-deprecating thoughts and swallows down the jealousy he feels. “Perhaps you should just tell him how you feel,” he starts cautiously, “the worst that can happen is that he doesn’t feel the same way, but at least you’d know for sure.”

Manon nods sadly, and shuffles closer to Lucas to place her head on his shoulder. He feels bittersweet.

* * *

 

After their talk on Friday, Manon seems much more cheerful. She’s been lively in this week’s rehearsals, even laughing at times. Lucas wonders if she ever talked to the guy she likes. He refuses to dwell on the thought of the guy being Eliott.

It is Wednesday, and Lucas is messing around with Yann and Basile, not even pretending to be working. Their fun is cut short when Daphné snaps, “Lucas? Why don’t you work with Manon again on the ‘All I Ask of You’ scene?”

Feeling reprimanded and ignoring the gang’s snickers, Lucas shuffles over to Daphné and Manon. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Eliott talking animatedly with Alex, a huge smile on his face.

“Lucas?” Daphné waves her hand in front of his face. “Why don’t you and Manon run through the whole scene this time, including the kiss?”

Both Lucas and Manon look at each other awkwardly before Manon shrugs and with a mischievous grin says, “sure, why not?”

He and Manon start going through the scene, Manon acting fearful of the Phantom and Lucas trying to reassure her that she’s safe. Lucas absentmindedly notices that quite a few people have opted to stop working and were instead watching them.

_Love me, that’s all I ask of you_

He and Manon finish the song with a deep kiss that draws whistles from the group, much to his chagrin. They both bow sheepishly and Manon throws her arm over Lucas’s shoulders. As his eyes glance over the room, his heart stops- in the back of the room, arms firmly crossed and mouth set in a hard line, stands Eliott, looking angrier than Lucas can ever remember seeing him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for your comments and kudos, they're greatly appreciated!


	4. Afraid of the dark

Monday morning has Lucas running to make it to biology class in time, cursing himself for waking up late. It was probably a mistake to have spent all of Sunday with the gang playing video games and drinking until the early hours of the morning. He makes it to class with five minutes to spare, leaning on the doorway trying to catch his breath before going in. As he makes his way to his seat, he sees Imane looking at something intently on her phone.

Lucas feels a sense of mischievousness and creeps up behind her before slamming his books on the table, making Imane jump out of her seat.

“Lucas, what the-” She starts. She then shoots a horrified look back at her phone, which Lucas can see is on Sofiane’s Instagram.

“Oh shit.” Her panicked whisper draws Lucas’s attention to the little red heart under one of Sofiane’s selfies that she must’ve accidently hit when he startled her.

He cackles as he sits down, smirking at her. “Lucas, look at what you made me do you little-”

She’s interrupted by a text from Daphné, and Lucas gets one from her also. They both open the texts, seeing that Daphné has written them the same thing:

**Hey! Don’t go to the foyer after classes today and instead go to this address!**

Daphné then sends a location pin for where they’re supposed to go. Lucas sees that the location is some theater not too far from the school. Imane and Lucas look at each other, eyebrows raised.

* * *

 

Lucas and the gang arrive together at the theater, looking around curiously. The theater is no Palais Garnier, but it’s got velvet seating in the auditorium, a box for the orchestra, and even a medium-sized chandelier that glimmers overhead. Most importantly, however, is the large stage that Daphné is currently standing on, the girl gang at her side.

“Come in, everyone!” Daphné is vibrating with barely restrained glee.

 “I’ve asked you all to come here because after a _teeny_ bit of pushing with the Principal,”

Lucas snorts at this. Nothing with Daphné was ever a teeny bit.

“He spoke with the theater director here and was able to get us access! So from now on, we’ll hold our rehearsals and our final performance here!”

Impressed murmurs go around the group, and Basile outright shouts, “Whoo! Way to go Daphné!”

“Dude, shut up!” hisses Arthur.

Daphné, however, smiles at Basile and continues, “So without further ado, let’s get to work!”

* * *

 

Lucas has to admit that having an actual theater to work in makes everything much easier.

There’s much more space now for Sofiane to teach choreography and small groups have their own areas to privately work on scenes. Because of this, everyone seemed to be in a great mood and rehearsal was going much more smoothly than usual. Well, not everyone is in a great mood, Lucas thinks.

Eliott was working with Manon across the stage from Lucas, and he couldn’t help but notice that Eliott seemed a lot less friendly with Manon than usual. His posture was severely hunched, and none of the commanding charisma he usually exuded when acting as the Phantom was there.

Lucas also didn’t fail to note that Eliott resolutely had not looked his way once, not even when Lucas walked right past him and Manon to talk to Emma about staging. It appeared that Eliott was still angry about last Friday’s kiss. _He must really like her_ , Lucas bitterly thinks. He feels his mood darken.

“Lucas?” Emma calls. “Could you go find some more staging tape? I think there’s some in one of the rooms somewhere behind the stage!”

Glad for the opportunity to leave, Lucas nods and makes his way to the back of the stage. There’s stairs leading to what must be the theater’s basement, so Lucas heads down, feeling the temperature drop slightly as he goes. Lucas looked in all the dressing rooms and supply closet he found on that floor, but to no avail, was there any tape. He spots a door at the end of the hallway, however, and decides there must be more rooms behind it.

There were indeed more rooms behind the door, but the lights here were barely flickering, casting the whole space in shadows. Shivering a bit, Lucas takes out his phone to turn on the flashlight before continuing to search the rooms.

* * *

 

He was so lost.

Lucas wasn’t even sure how he got lost, but one hallway turned into another and some rooms adjoined to others, making it impossible for him to remember which way he had come from. Trying to keep his breathing even, Lucas thinks back to which room he might’ve come from, when suddenly his phone battery dies, leaving him in pitch blackness.

He was definitely panicking now, never having been comfortable being in the dark. He squints his eyes, trying to look for a doorway to go through, feeling as though he was going to hyperventilate and pass out any second now.

“Hello?” He yells, hoping that maybe someone was on the first floor of the basement and could hear him.

He manages to get a hand on what feels like the edge of a doorway, but touches what feels like cobwebs, making him yell and stumble back. He bumps into something hard before strong arms reach out to grab him.

He shrieks at the sudden touch, before he hears a soft, “Hey, it’s alright. You’re alright.”

A brightness shines, and there stands Eliott, one hand wrapped around Lucas’s waist and another holding a small flashlight.

Lucas, still spooked out of his mind and not thinking entirely clearly, buries his face in Eliott’s chest, not caring about the way the arm around him tenses. A moment later, Eliott is gently pushing him away, but still holding him around the waist.

“Are you alright?” Eliott whispers.

Having calmed down a bit, Lucas looks up, seeing Eliott’s face barely illuminated by the flashlight held at his side. Eliott’s eyes are fixed upon Lucas’s face, pupils so wide that the blue-gray color is barely seen. Lucas doesn’t know what expression his face is making right now, too stunned by their proximity. He realizes Eliott had asked him a question, but is only able to nod in response.

Rather than loosening his grip at Lucas’s nod, however, Eliott’s hand tightens on Lucas’s waist. Lucas finds that he doesn’t really seem to care.

Feeling particularly bold, Lucas lays his head back on Eliott’s chest. Eliott allows him and they stand there for what feels like hours, but really was probably only seconds, when they hear footsteps running towards them.

They spring apart when Emma, bright flashlight in hand, bursts into the room. “Oh thank goodness, there you are Lucas, I was worried you had gotten lost.”

“I had, but uh, Eliott found me,” he responds.

“Turns out Daphné already had some tape upstairs! But she wants you guys to come back up now since we’re going to start running through the play!”

Lucas nods, feeling his feet move reluctantly to follow her back out. He ignores Eliott’s presence behind him, feeling awkward now and little bit ashamed of his reaction.

When the three of them make it back to the stage, Eliott immediately leaves them to go back to work with Manon. Lucas tries not to feel disappointed when he doesn’t look at Lucas for the rest of the evening.

* * *

 

Lucas lay in bed late that night unable to sleep, tossing and turning uncomfortably.

They had run through the first half of the play, and Lucas feels his insides clench as he remembers Eliott during his ‘Music of the Night’ scene. The song itself is already seductive, but having Eliott play the Phantom made it so much worse as he circled slowly and teasingly around Manon, his words a velvety caress.

Lucas groans and tosses again, kicking off his hot blankets. He also couldn’t stop thinking about their encounter in the basement, feeling his cheeks heat up with the memory. He was embarrassed, but also pleased that Eliott had held him so closely. When Lucas laid his head on Eliott’s chest, he had felt Eliott’s heart beating erratically. That didn’t necessarily mean anything, but what if…

Lucas groans once more and flips on his back, deciding, _fuck it,_ sliding a hand into his boxers.

As the heat builds, he thinks of intense blue-gray eyes, a frantic heartbeat, and a bruising grip on his waist.

_ Open up your mind, let your fantasies unwind.... In this darkness that you know you cannot fight _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: Palais Garnier is the opera house that inspired the original story of the Phantom of the Opera. 
> 
> Thank you for all your comments and kudos, they're much appreciated!


	5. Single rose

The next several weeks flew by, people getting more and more busy as exam season loomed ahead. Lucas is currently sitting in the coloc with Imane, his irritation rising at Mika and Lisa continually screaming on some stupid gameshow on the tv. When Mika lets out a particularly loud scream of mirth, Lucas yells, “please shut the hell up! Can’t you see we’re trying to study?”

Mika grumbles that Lucas is a jerk as he drags Lisa out of the living room.

“Sorry about that,” Lucas huffs, turning back to his biology book that is full of complicated charts.

Imane shrugs, “don’t worry about it.”

Lucas eyes her suspiciously. Imane had been weirdly reserved lately, not even poking fun at Lucas like she normally would. “Okay, out with it,” he says.

Imane looks up confusedly, “what?”

“You’ve been really quiet recently and you haven’t even made fun of my stupid looking graph here,” he points at a barren and horribly drawn mitosis graph in his notes. “Is something bothering you?” Lucas questions, a bit softer.

Imane sighs and puts down her pencil. “It’s nothing really…I’ve just been a bit stressed with the exams and Daphné is breathing down my neck all the time about the rehearsals.”

Lucas could understand this. Daphné had been more snappy than usual, Lucas even saw her get on to Eliott last week for drawing in his notepad rather than practicing. Lucas was rather glad of this, since every now and again he would look over at Eliott, only to see him already staring unnervingly at Lucas. When Lucas would look again, Eliott would be absorbed in his drawings. _He’s a weird guy,_ Lucas thinks.

Lucas hesitates before speaking up again, “is it just the rehearsals? Or maybe…people in it?” He was trying to allude to the way Sofiane and Imane seemed to be dancing around each other, but neither actually making a move.

“What do you mean?” She sharply asks, shoulders tense.

“Nothing, nevermind, I don’t know what I mean,” he responds quickly.

“And what about you?”

Lucas feels his breathing stutter, “what?”

“Any…people making rehearsals difficult for you?”

Lucas shakes his head, not trusting his voice.

Imane abruptly says, “someone has a crush on Manon.”

“Oh?”

She nods, “someone has been leaving a rose in her dressing room after every rehearsal. She has no idea who it is.”

Lucas sits in silence with this information, trying not to think too deeply about it. “She’s got her own Phantom stalker it seems like,” he jokes, trying to lighten the atmosphere.

An introspective “hmm” is all Imane says in response.

* * *

 

Daphné may be acting a bit strict, but it was certainly resulting in good progress for the group. They could now run through the first half of the play smoothly, singing and choreography down pat. The problem they were having was with the second half, as the emotions in this part of the play were much more heightened and the characters’ change of feelings was a complicated task.

Daphné was working closely with Manon and Eliott on the final scene, trying to direct the change of heart the characters have. As Raoul, Lucas was in the scene, but just to try to rescue Christine from the Phantom’s lair. He’s unsuccessful as he gets trapped by the Phantom, and thus relies on Christine to convince the Phantom to let him go.

“Let’s try it from the beginning!” Daphné shouts, and the technical crew scurries to get the lights on and the music going.

Lucas runs onto the stage, yelling for Christine. Eliott sneaks up behind him to place a rope around his neck, trapping him to a makeshift gate. The action of wrapping the rope around Lucas’s neck looks harsh, but he feels how gentle Eliott’s hands are when doing so.

Lucas remains trapped to the gate, singing for Christine to be set free and Manon is tearfully pleading with the Phantom to not kill Raoul. Eliott, as always when acting as the Phantom, is commanding and angrily argues that the world isn’t fair, yelling that the world had never treated him kindly because of his deformity.

Christine softens at this, seeing the root cause of the Phantom’s actions.

Manon sings, _pitiful creature of darkness, what kind of life have you known?_

Lucas is stunned by the myriad of emotions that flit over Eliott’s face, unsure if the hurt he sees there is just Eliott acting out the Phantom’s pain or stems from something deeper, more personal.

_God give me courage to show you, you are not alone!_

As the music swells, Lucas can only watch helplessly as Manon inches forward to close the gap between her and Eliott, kissing him softly once and then harder again as Eliott cups her face.

* * *

 

The group chatters excitedly around Lucas, people talking about weekend plans and parties. Lucas continues to pack up his stuff, his movements sluggish. He feels completely drained, wanting nothing more than to just crawl into his bed and sleep the whole weekend. The gang made fun of him for being such a grandpa when he turned down their invite to go to another party at Chloé’s, but he honestly had no energy to deal with her or the craziness of a Friday night.

As he shrugs on his backpack, a shadow looms over him, a woodsy smell filling his nose.

Eliott stands there, shifting awkwardly before clearing his throat. “I, um, am going to get dinner at this place nearby and I waswonderingifyouwouldliketocome?”

Lucas blinks, “sorry, what was that?”

Eliott takes a deep breath and says slowly, “Do you want to go get dinner?”

“With me,” he adds.

Lucas stands there, dumbfounded. As the silence grows, Eliott rushes to say, “uh it’s cool if you already have plans, I was just thinking I would invite you since I’m going anyway, you see, so uh yeah, I-“

“That sounds good,” Lucas interrupts, smiling a little.

Eliott stops and then a beatific smile graces his face, eyes crinkling up. “Great! Shall we?”

* * *

 

The restaurant Eliott chose was a small pizza parlor close to the theater. There was only one couple sitting in the back, the rest of the place was empty. Conversation, to Lucas’s surprise, was flowing easily between them.

“You like dubstep?” Lucas laughs, his nose scrunching in disgust.

“You don’t?!” Eliott replies. “It’s so good, really, you should check it out!”

“If you say so,” Lucas says with a smirk. Eliott laughs again, but is interrupted by the buzzing of his phone on the table. Lucas sees an incoming call from the name Lucille pop up on the screen.

Eliott’s mouth twists downward, eyes hardening, before ignoring the call and flipping his phone face down.

Curious with the negative reaction, Lucas asks “do you need to get that?”

“No, it’s fine.”

Cajoled by Lucas’s questioning gaze, Eliott adds, “it’s my ex. She’s been bothering me lately about getting back together.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Lucas says sincerely.

Eliott looks up, surprised. “Why are you sorry?”

Lucas flounders for a moment before deciding on saying, “you look sad, so I’m sorry if the breakup is hard.”

Eliott looks intently into Lucas’s eyes. “The breakup isn’t hard, and I’m not sad,” he says firmly.

Lucas swallows, unsure of how to respond.

Eliott lets up his gaze from Lucas, continuing “it’s just been annoying having to deal with it is all. We weren’t good for each other for awhile, but it was only when I said I wanted to break up because I liked someone else that she started getting really controlling.”

Lucas feels his heart rate quicken at the admission, but says nothing. Eliott looks back at Lucas, eyes glimmering with _something_ before the waiter arrives to take their order. They spend the rest of the meal joking around and talking about random things-Eliott apparently sees himself as a raccoon, which causes Lucas to snort-but they don’t broach the _liking someone_ subject again.

* * *

 

Eliott insists on walking Lucas home, despite Lucas’s protests that he doesn’t need to do that. The walk to the coloc was little more tense, but in a way that caused a fluttery little feeling in Lucas’s stomach.

“This is me,” Lucas says, pointing to his apartment.

Eliott looks briefly at it before directing his gaze at Lucas, his eyes roaming Lucas’s face. “So this is where we say goodnight then,” he says, a small smile gracing his lips.

Lucas feels the fluttering in his stomach increase as he notices Eliott lingering, his eyes darting to Lucas’s mouth. Before he could say anything, however, he hears the coloc door opening and Manon’s voice. “Lucas,” she calls, “is that you? Oh, hey Eliott!”

Lucas sees Eliott’s face immediately close off, becoming impassive. He hadn’t realized how open Eliott’s face had been throughout the night until now. “Hi Manon, I’m just dropping off Lucas,” Eliott replies, voice seemingly light.

“Do you want to come in? I’m sure the others wouldn’t mind!” Manon says, but Eliott, having flicked his eyes briefly to Lucas, shakes his head.

“No, that’s alright, I should get going. Lucas,” he says more softly, “thanks for coming out with me tonight.”

“Yeah, no problem. Um, thanks for inviting me.” Lucas gives him a small smile that Eliott returns before he walks away into the night.

Lucas feels Manon’s questioning gaze on the side of his face as he walks into the coloc, but decides to ignore her, not wanting to deal with an interrogation. Perhaps sensing this, Manon instead asks, “Lucas, could you help me take some of these costumes to my room?” She points at a pile of colorful fabrics on the kitchen table.

“Daphné dropped them off, hoping I could sew some more details into them,” she adds.

Lucas helps bring the costumes to her room, dumping them on her bed. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees a vase full of roses on her desk.

“Those are nice,” he says, nodding his head toward the flowers.

Manon’s cheeks color pink. “Oh, they’re just some roses someone has been leaving for me in my dressing room. They’re nice, so I didn’t want to throw them out.”

“Yeah, Imane had mentioned something about an admirer,” Lucas says with a teasing lilt in his voice. “Any idea who they’re from?”

Manon shakes her head. “No idea, but they must be doing it either early before rehearsals or just after everyone’s left for the day.”

Lucas teases her a bit more until she laughs and kicks him out her room.

* * *

 

Monday has Lucas arriving early to the theater, a spring in his step. Ever since his dinner (date?) with Eliott, he’s felt unusually happy. He tries not to think about why that is.

His literature class that afternoon got cancelled, his teacher having gotten sick after lunch. Lucas decided to head to the theater early and maybe see if Emma needed any help setting up. He’s setting down his bag in the dressing room he shares with Yann and Basile, when he hears a creaking of floorboards outside the room.

He carefully ducks his head out, eyes widening when he spots Eliott. _Why is he coming out of Manon’s dressing room?_

When Eliott has left, Lucas tiptoes to Manon’s room, quietly opening the door. He looks around the room and his heart plummets, eyes prickling hotly against his will.

On her vanity table lay a single rose.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oof.
> 
> Please leave comments or kudos, they’re really appreciated!


	6. There will never be a day when I won't think of you

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's picking up! Here's a bit of a longer chapter for you all. 
> 
> Thank you for your comments and kudos, they're lovely!

“You guys, I’m telling you Daphy is totally into to me!”

Yann snickers, “In your dreams, Baz.”

Basile is getting red in the face as he retorts, “I’m telling you, I was feeling vibes from her last week!”

“Are you sure you aren’t misreading things? Like maybe her vibes are actually telling you to piss off,” Arthur interrupts. Yann lets out a laugh.

“Lulu,” Basile whines, “they’re being mean to me.”

“Lulu? You there?”

Lucas is startled out of his brooding, not having paid attention to anything the guys had been saying. They were sitting in the cafeteria having lunch, but Lucas doesn’t even really remember walking here, he’d been so lost in thought.

“Lucas?” He hears again, this time from Yann sounding concerned.

“Yeah? Sorry, didn’t get much sleep last night,” Lucas replies and pulls his food towards him despite not having an appetite.

Yann reluctantly accepts this explanation before saying, “So, Chloé’s house tonight? Apparently everyone’s going to be there.”

Basile and Arthur sound out their agreement, but Lucas sits in silence. “Lucas? You’re coming right?”

He looks at Yann. “I don’t know, man, I’m not really feeling up to it-”

“You have to come,” Basile interrupts. “You missed the last one remember?”

“He’s right,” says Arthur.

Lucas sighs at all the guys looking at him expectantly, and mutters out, “fine, I’ll go.” The guys cheer in excitement just as the bell rings for the end of lunch.

* * *

 

Lucas stands in front of his closet, regretting for the hundredth time that he agreed to go to this party. He’s been in a bad mood for the past two weeks and often took it out on the guys, so he really should go to the party and try to make it up to them. It’s just lately he’s been so…moody.

Rehearsals the past couple of weeks were difficult since Lucas was determined to give Eliott the silent treatment. He wasn’t faring much better with Manon, but was able to swallow his pride and still talk to her. It wasn’t her fault after all that Eliott was leaving her roses. Lucas feels his mood sour further as he remembers how nonchalant Eliott was being about the whole thing. Surely he’d be more attentive towards Manon if he liked her so much? But Lucas, whenever he sneakily glanced over at the pair, didn’t notice any difference in Eliott’s behavior.

Eliott certainly noticed a difference in Lucas’s behavior though. Lucas tried to ignore the hurt puppy dog look on Eliott’s face every time he walked the other way whenever he saw Eliott about to speak to him. Eliott kept his distance though and hadn’t confronted Lucas about it, thankfully. His behavior hadn’t gone unnoticed, however. Both Yann and Emma had questioned him about it, wondering if he and Eliott were in a fight or something. Lucas resolutely denied this and lied that he just didn’t have any scenes to work on with Eliott right now.

As Lucas continues to ponder over what he should wear, his phone buzzes with texts from the gang.

Basile: Let’s go guysssss!

Arthur: On my way

Yann: Same!

Yann: Lulu are you still coming!

Basile: He’d better!

Lucas: Yeah just about to leave

Lucas pockets his phone in his black jeans and decides to just wear a blue jean button down that Manon once said looked nice on him.

He arrives at Chloé’s the same time as the guys, Basile practically vibrating with excitement. “Okay guys,” he starts, “this is my chance! Wish me luck!” Lucas shakes his head exasperatedly when Basile rushes inside the house, looking for Daphné.

The three of them walk in, Arthur being side tracked by Alexia, wanting to introduce him to someone. Yann and Lucas make a beeline for the kitchen and grab some beers before finding a couch in the corner.  “So,” Yann smirks and pulls out a bag of weed. “Shall we?”

Lucas feels his eyes light up. “Yes, we shall.”

* * *

 

He and Yann are laughing loudly at a dumb video on Yann’s phone, and Lucas feels pleasantly tipsy and light. He could almost forget what he’d been upset about lately. That was until Eliott walked in the door, followed by Manon. Lucas feels himself sober up, a frown forming on his face as he watches Manon whisper something in Eliott’s ear before walking away to find Daphné. Eliott, with astonishing accuracy, darts his eyes across the room to meet Lucas’s, before Lucas turns away.

“You alright, man?” Yann asks, a crease forming between his eyebrows.

“Yeah, yeah I’m fine,” Lucas mumbles, looking dejectedly down at his beer.

“You know…you can tell me anything right?”

Lucas looks back up, surprised at Yann’s serious tone. “Anything at all Lucas. And I know you think I don’t notice when something’s wrong, but I do, and lately there’s something that’s been bothering you. I can tell.”

Lucas swallows hard debating how much he should tell Yann. Perhaps the beer and weed was making him feel bold, or maybe it was just that he was ready to talk to his best friend. Lucas takes a deep breath and looks at a spot over Yann’s shoulder, not quite able to meet Yann’s eyes. “I like someone,” he says.

“Okay…is it Chloé?” Yann asks, perplexed.

“No, no it’s not her,” Lucas chews on his lip for a minute. “It’s a not a her at all. It’s…a guy”

When no response from Yann comes, Lucas looks at him in the eye, certain that his insecurity was showing on his face now. Perhaps that was it because in one second Yann looked confused and uncertain, and in the next, Lucas was being crushed by a strong hug. Lucas feels his eyes water and hugs Yann back tightly.

Yann looks a little teary-eyed himself when he pulls back with a small smile, saying, “Okay, Lucas. Thank you for telling me.”

Lucas feels a weight lift off his chest as he smiles back. They settle into the couch again and drink a little more before Yann pipes, “So who’s the lucky guy?”

Lucas gives him a wan smile, fiddling with his beer. “It’s not important now. He doesn’t feel the same. He likes a girl.”

Yann looks at him sympathetically before clapping him on the shoulder. “Listen, forget about him then. There’s plenty of other guys! In fact, and I wasn’t going to tell you this before, but do you know James?”

“James?” Lucas questions. “The blonde guy on the technical team?”

“Yeah. Well, I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but guy seems to have a bit of a crush on you.” Yann nods his head over to the corner where James was standing with Emma, eyes widening when he sees Lucas looking at him. When James turns back quickly to talk to Emma, Lucas sees that the tips of his ears are bright red.

Having been so caught up in his own problems, Lucas never noticed James at all, only having spoken to him once or twice about the lighting during his and Manon’s scenes. Yann elbows him in the side and says, “you should go talk to him. Maybe dance a bit.”

Lucas looks at Yann incredulously. “Dude, no. I don’t even know him really and besides I’m still not really out, you know?”

“Look, you don’t have to do anything crazy, just talk to him for a bit. Also, look how drunk everyone here is, no one’s going to remember anything come tomorrow anyway.”

Lucas supposed he was right, but felt hesitant to get up and walk over to James. At that moment, he sees Manon come out of a bedroom, phone in hand, and walk over to where Eliott had been chatting with Alex. Lucas sees them talk lowly, shoulders close together before he makes his decision and stands up.

“Atta boy,” Yann says. Lucas walks over to James and Emma, seeing James look like a deer caught in headlights and Emma smiling.

“Hey Lucas, you know James,” she says.

“Yeah, hey how’s it going?” He asks, giving James a small smile.

James splutters, cheeks turning pink before stuttering out, “g-good. How are you, Lucas?”

Lucas briefly wonders why people like James and Chloé seemed to like him so much, but other people like Eli-No, he wasn’t going to go there.

“Hey, I’ll be right back! Manon just texted me,” Emma says before rushing off.

He and James stand there awkwardly before James is looking at Lucas, a strange look on his face. He squares up his shoulders and says, “do you want to do some shots?”

Lucas looks at him, surprised, before grinning. “Lead the way.”

* * *

 

Lucas knows he’s gone way past his limit, but can’t really find it in himself to care. He and James did several shots of vodka before heading out to the dance floor where everyone else was, and Lucas feels very loose and carefree. He and James are dancing and he feels hands grip his waist and a hard chest pressed up against his back. When he looks up blearily, he sees James’s face and blonde hair come swimmingly into view. Lucas gives him a smile that James returns, his hands tightening on Lucas’s hips. Lucas feels one hand move from his waist to slip underneath his shirt, tracing the muscles on his stomach. There’s hot breath next to his ear, and lips touch lightly beneath his ear on his neck. Suddenly, he’s feeling too hot, too nauseous, and Lucas pulls himself away from James and his wandering hands. “I’ve-I gotta go to the bathroom,” he says and bolts out of the room.

He finds a bathroom that’s blissfully empty and splashes cold water on his face, wondering how he’s going to slip out of here without James noticing. With the bright bathroom lights and the icy water on his face, he feels completely sobered up and is already regretting getting so handsy with someone he barely knows. A knock sounds on the door.

“Someone’s in here,” he calls irritably. Another knock comes, and then another one. And Lucas angrily opens the door, ready to shout at the annoying person-

It’s Eliott who’s standing there, looking horribly uncomfortable. Lucas blinks himself out of his stupor and barks, “what do you want?”

Eliott shuffles his feet, seemingly unable to stand still, before he says, “I saw you rush out…and wanted to make sure you were okay.”

Lucas huffs and turns back to the sink to wash his hands. “Well, as you can see, I’m fine. I don’t need a babysitter.”

He knows he’s being a jerk, but feels some of his previous anger from the weeks before coursing through him as he remembers how snuggly Eliott and Manon looked tonight. “You can go now. I’m sure Manon is looking for you.”

Lucas meets Eliott’s eyes in the mirror and Eliott looks adorably confused, eyebrows raised into his hairline. “Why would she be looking for me?”

Lucas ignores this and says, “anyway, I gotta get back to the party.”

“To your little blonde friend?” Eliott snaps.

Lucas looks at him and sees Eliott’s eyes have hardened, jawline even more pronounced as he clenches his teeth together. “Didn’t know you and James were so close,” he growls out.

 “What,” he starts sarcastically, “you don’t like my suitor, Mr. Phantom?”

Lucas rolls his eyes and makes his way to the door, intending on pushing Eliott out of the way, when he hears a quiet, “no, I don’t.”

“What?” Lucas asks, dumbfounded and not sure he heard that correctly.

Eliott sighs deeply. “I don’t like it. Your,” his mouth twists, “suitor, that is.”

Lucas feels like he’s in the twilight zone where nothing is making sense right now and honestly just wants to go home at this point. He feels his shoulders droop, his anger leaving him. He feels bereft and uncertain, and so stays silent, choosing to just stare at Eliott instead.

Eliott sighs again, walking further into the bathroom and shuts the door behind him. “We need to talk,” he says.

Lucas says nothing. Eliott walks just bit closer, causing Lucas to step back until his lower back hits the sink. “Why have you been avoiding me? I thought we…had a good time at dinner?”

Eliott no longer looks angry either, and instead looks hurt, his shoulders more hunched than usual.

Lucas lets out a strong huff and looks up briefly before saying, “I thought we did too.”

Eliott looks perplexed. “Then what’s the problem, Lucas?”

Lucas isn’t prepared for the soft way Eliott says his name, like a gentle caress. He isn’t prepared for any of this to be honest. Eliott’s eyes are too blue in this lighting, his pretty face too upset for Lucas’s liking.

Lucas swallows before repeating, “I thought we had a good time too. But you should’ve told me about your crush.”

Eliott looks stricken, and his normally pale face is suffused with color. “I-what, who told you?”

Lucas scrubs a hand over his face. “Look, if you wanted to find out more about Manon, you could’ve just asked me, you know? You didn’t have to go through this whole dinner thing like it was a dat-like it was something else,” he amended.

Eliott looks confused again. “Why would I ask you about Manon?”

Lucas lets out a growl, feeling too fed up with the circles they were going in. “I saw you leave Manon’s dressing room the other day,” he says bluntly. “I know that she’s been receiving roses from an admirer.”

Eliott, if possible, looks even more confused. “And you, what, think that admirer is me?”

Lucas just raises his eyebrows in response. Eliott, to Lucas’s surprise, lets out an exasperated laugh. Lucas crosses his arms over his chest, feeling strangely defensive. “What?”

Eliott looks at Lucas intently and firmly says, “I put that rose in her room because Alex asked me to.”

Now it was Lucas’s turn to feel confused. _Alex? Alex had a crush on Manon? That didn’t even make sense, he was totally head over heels for Emma._

“What-” Lucas starts, but he’s interrupted by Eliott.

“I don’t like Manon,” he says insistently, his eyes boring into Lucas’s. The air feels tense, brimming with something unsaid.

“…okay,” is all Lucas is able to say in response, and perhaps he is still a bit drunk because he certainly feels like it with the way his stomach is fluttering about and the way he feels unable to breathe. But that might just be because of the way Eliott is staring at him right now.

“I don’t like Manon,” he repeats as he steps closer. Lucas, with his back pressed up against the sink, has nowhere to go as he takes in this revelation. Distantly, he can hear the music and yelling going on downstairs and it must be raining out, as there’s the tell-tale pitter-patter on the roof. All of that seems very far away, however, compared to Eliott as he inches even closer, his eyes burning.

Lucas doesn’t know who moves first but he feels the crash of lips on his and one hand tilts up chin while another grasps his hip tightly. Lucas feels himself gasp and Eliott plunges in like a man starving. The feeling is mutual, Lucas thinks, as twines both hands into Eliott’s wild hair. Eliott suddenly lifts him up onto the counter and Lucas wraps his legs around Eliott’s waist, pulling him closer.

Eliott tears his mouth away and Lucas thinks he hears a guttural, “oh god,” before Eliott attaches his lips to Lucas’s neck, his hands seemingly everywhere-squeezing his thighs, running up his arms, his chest, threading through his hair. Lucas feels as though he may combust, burning up from within.

And just as quickly as it started, it stops, as two girls barge into the bathroom, one lunging for the toilet to throw up in. Lucas and Eliott escape the bathroom and run into Manon, who looks from one to the other, eyebrows raising higher and higher. Desperate to escape the situation, Lucas asks, “do you know where Yann is?”

Manon looks startled. “Yeah, he’s somewhere by the kitchen, but Lucas, what-’’

Lucas doesn’t listen to her finish as he bolts away, unable to even look at Eliott. He doesn’t bother to find Yann, knowing he’ll just text him later, and slips out the back door. It’s still raining out, but he can’t bring himself to care as he walks to the bus stop, feeling numbly shocked after everything that’s just happened. He climbs onto the bus when it arrives, shivering at the warm air inside. He’s startled by a familiar song playing from the driver’s radio.

_Recall those days, look back on all those times, think of the things we’ll never do. There will never be a day when I won’t think of you._

Against his will, his lips pull up in a smile and he feels a small surge of hope.


	7. An Italian opera

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all! Sorry for the delay, I had a bit of trouble with this chapter but I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> Comments are kudos are always appreciated!

Lucas lay in bed scrolling through Instagram, the Saturday morning light filtering through the curtains. He bites his lip as he hovers over Daphné’s DM, trying to gather some courage to ask her for Eliott’s number. He knows that Daphné had the numbers of everyone in the play, given that she constantly texted reminders about rehearsals. He inhales deeply and types out: **Hey Daphy, do you have Eliott’s number? I wanted to ask him a question about one of the scenes in the play.**

He snorts at his blatant lie, but hits send anyway, trying not to feel nervous. Daphné writes back almost immediately, saying: **Hey Lucas! That’s weird, Eliott asked me for your number literally yesterday saying he had a question for you about a scene too! I figured he would’ve texted you by now.**

Lucas feels a large, uncontrollable grin creep up on his face. _Eliott had asked for his number._ He writes to Daphné, **you know what I totally forgot about that. Sorry nevermind!** Daphné simply replies with a laughing emoji.

Lucas lays back down, feeling elated. He’ll wait for Eliott to text him then.

* * *

 

Lucas regrets not asking for Eliott’s number, because it was now Monday morning and still no text from him. Lucas wanted to apologize for running off so quickly on Friday night, he just had been so…overwhelmed. He feels his cheeks heat up at the memory of Eliott confessing that he didn’t like Manon and then the kiss that followed. Lucas’s musings were interrupted by Imane coming into the biology classroom, and he willed his face to go back to its normal color.

“Why’s your face so red?”

No such luck, then.

“No reason, just hot out,” he replies.

Imane definitely looks like she doesn’t believe him but doesn’t press it. “Are you ready for the last two weeks of rehearsals?”

Lucas is startled. “What? Already?”

Imane rolls her eyes and says, “haven’t you been paying attention? Why do you think Daphy’s been so crazy the past couple of weeks? Our performance is literally two Saturdays from now.”

Lucas had noticed Daphné being more snappy and scatterbrained than usual, but hadn’t realized the performance was so soon as he’d been caught up in his own world of…well, Eliott. “Wow. Well, I suppose we’re prepared right? We’ve been practicing nearly everyday for three months now.”

Imane lets out a hmpf. “Let’s hope we’re ready. Otherwise Daphné will skin all of us alive.”

* * *

 

Lucas walks into the theater for this afternoon’s rehearsals with a nervous sort of energy buzzing under his skin. He spots Eliott in the back corner talking with Manon and Daphné, and dodges Basile’s high five as he makes his way over.

“He can’t just worm his way back into your life like that,” Daphné whispers furiously to Manon.

Lucas hears the girls going back and forth about something, but tunes them out as he approaches an uncomfortable-looking Eliott. He stops behind the trio and clears his throat, causing all three to jump.

“Hey, do you mind if I grab Eliott for a minute? There’s some things we need to work on,” Lucas says, thankful that his voice didn’t crack.

Eliott looks like a deer caught in the headlights, his blue-gray eyes wide and unblinking. “Yes, of course! Manon and I have uh, some things to work out as well. We’ll leave you two to it!” Daphné grabs Manon by the arm and drags her over to where Imane and Alexia are standing.

Lucas stands in front of Eliott alone now, unsure of what to say.

“Hi, what’s up?”

“Hey, how’re you?”

They say at the same time, causing both to grin a little. Lucas swallows and ploughs ahead. “So look, I wanted to apologize for um, running out so quickly last time.”

He sees Eliott shaking his head and open his mouth as if to reassure him, but Lucas continues, more quietly. “It was my first kiss…with a guy and so I, uh was a little overwhelmed and I tend to run away from things when I get nervous,” he ends sheepishly.

Eliott’s eyes glitter with _something_ and the corner of his mouth quirks up, as though pleased. “That’s alright, Lucas. Thank you for telling me,” Eliott says softly.

Having apologized now, Lucas feels himself squirming under Eliott’s gaze, not sure of what to say next. Lucas steels himself, and with an unusual burst of boldness he says, “I’d like to do dinner or something again sometime, if you’d like. You know, to apologize uh, properly.”

Eliott looks stunned, but recovers quickly, a swift, genuine smile gracing his face. “I’d like that, Lucas.”

Ridiculously pleased, Lucas starts walking backwards. “Great, so just let me know when’s a good time for you. You can text me. I know Daphné gave you my number, after all,” he says cheekily.

And without waiting for a response, he turns around and walks off, but not before hearing Alex say, “Eliott, are you feeling alright, man? Your face is really red.”

Lucas bites his lip, trying not to grin.

* * *

 

Eliott did text Lucas and they scheduled a date for the coming Saturday. Lucas was hesitant in calling it a date, but Eliott insisted it was, sending a winky face and heart emoji with it. Even though Lucas sees Eliott practically everyday at rehearsals, Eliott was constantly texting him, sending him memes and pictures of random things. Lucas knew he was just as bad though, since Yann and Arthur have already complained several times about him paying more attention to his phone than to them.

Rehearsals were more fun with Eliott, too. Together, they made fun of how obviously in love Imane and Sofiane were acting, and laughed at Basile’s many antics in his attempts to win Daphné over. Eliott particularly seemed to relish making fun of James. Lucas noticed that after that party James never spoke to him again. He didn’t particularly care.

In just the span of a week, Lucas felt like he and Eliott had been close for years. It was scary, but it also brought a rush of warmth any time Lucas learned something new about Eliott or Eliott sent a photo, saying: **this made me think of you**.

Speaking of Eliott’s texts, he sent one just now: **I’ll meet you at your place at 8!** **Wear something nice!**

Lucas rolls his eyes at the slew of winky faces and heart eyes Eliott sent after that. He had tried very hard over the course of the week to get Eliott to slip where they were going for their date, but to no avail. He now stands in front of his closet, fretting. What exactly is _nice_?

Mika finds him five minutes later still standing in front of his closet. “What’re you looking for, kitten?”

Lucas hesitates telling him, fearing Mika’s overdramatic tendencies but says, “I um, have a date. Tonight.”

“WHAT!”

Lucas winces, regretting saying anything already. “Tell me everything! Who’s it with? Where are you going? Do we know him?”

“Mika, slow down,” Lucas laughs. “It’s with Eliott.”

“The tall, pretty boy Manon says is always staring at you?”

Lucas doesn’t think Eliott stared at him _that_ much, but then remembered at rehearsals on Thursday Eliott had been staring at Lucas so intently he walked into Emma, making her drop the lightning equipment she was holding.

“I’m not sure where we’re going though. He just said wear something nice.” Lucas feels some of his panic come back. It was already thirty minutes until 8 and he still didn’t have an outfit picked out.

“Hmm,” is all Mika says before rummaging through Lucas’s closet. He pulls out black slacks and a white button down. “Put these on, kitten.”

Lucas changes right there, not caring about modesty. It’s Mika after all, who has no sense of it anyway. Mika lets out an appreciative hum when Lucas is dressed, unbuttoning two of the shirt’s top buttons and then musing his hair.

“He won’t be able to keep his hands off you tonight, kitten, mark my words.”

Lucas rolls his eyes and lets out an exasperated huff before not so gently pushing Mika out of his bedroom.

“Have a good time tonight Lulu! Don’t forget to use protection!”

“Mika!!” Lucas yells, face beet red. He hears Mika cackling down the hallway. Lucas runs a hand through his hair one last time before he hears the doorbell ring.

He rushes down the stairs, trying not to trip, and opens the door feeling slightly breathless. The sight of Eliott in dressy clothes is enough to take away Lucas’s remaining breath. He’s dressed similar to Lucas, but has a leather jacket on as well. _Kill me now, he looks good._

“Hi,” Lucas says shyly. Eliott rips his eyes away from the area around Lucas’s neck and responds, “hi, Lucas. You look nice.”

Lucas feels himself flush. “Thanks, so do you.”

Eliott grants him a beatific smile and holds out his arm. “Shall we?”

* * *

 

Lucas sits on a red velvet seat in a stupor. “You...” he starts again. “You bought tickets to the Palais Garnier?”

Eliott shoots him a foxlike grin. “Yep! It’s not the Phantom or anything, but I’ve heard good things about this play.”

Lucas looks down at the program he was given earlier. The play is some Italian opera about two lovers. He wouldn’t have picked it out for himself, but knowing Eliott put thought into this and wanted to spend time with him makes Lucas feel warm inside.

The lights dim and the play begins, the loud operatic sounds filling the whole theater.

* * *

 

Lucas is a little bored, he has to admit. He’s having a hard time following the plot of the play and the opera lead’s voice is grating a bit on his ears. He sits still however, seeing that Eliott seems to be enjoying himself.

He tries to refocus on the play when he feels Eliott’s hand, warm and broad, land lightly on his thigh. Lucas darts his eyes toward Eliott, who’s still looking determinedly at the stage. The hand begins to make small circles for awhile, before moving dangerously close to…

Lucas gulps audibly and whispers, “sorry, bathroom.” He darts out of his seat and eventually finds the bathroom. He relieves himself and washes his hands before splashing his face with water, feeling himself calm down enough to go back out. As he dries his face and hands though, he hears the bathroom door open and meets Eliott’s gaze through the mirror.

“You were gone awhile, just wanted to check on you,” Eliott says.

Lucas knows he hadn’t been gone for more than five minutes, but says nothing, feeling pinned by the heaviness of Eliott’s gaze. Lucas watches as Eliott wets his lips, and before he knows it, he’s being pulled into a bathroom stall and kissed deeply.

Eliott has Lucas pushed against the stall door and weaves one hand in his hair, another around his neck. The hand drops to the opening of Lucas’s shirt, fingers tracing the visible clavicle. Eliott puts his mouth next to Lucas’s ear and whispers, “you’ve no idea what you do to me.”

Lucas lets out a whimper that he’ll definitely deny later, but doesn’t think about it as he’s kissed again, bunching his fingers into the fabric of Eliott’s jacket.

“Do you want to get out of here?” Eliott sounds as wrecked as Lucas feels, and Lucas simply nods, not trusting his voice.

Eliott kisses him hard once more before pulling him by the hand out of the bathroom, out of the theater, and out into the night. When they make it to Eliott’s apartment, hands clumsy and mouths urgent, Lucas loses himself to the moment. There’s only one candle burning in Eliott’s room, hardly enough to illuminate anything, but Lucas finds that he enjoys the darkness. As long as Eliott is with him.


	8. Broken

Lucas wakes up slowly, his head laying on something hard and warm. And rising up and down. He lifts his head up quickly, seeing he’d been laying on top of Eliott’s bare chest. Lucas feels his face morph into what must be a mushy, lovestruck expression as he gazes down at Eliott’s sleeping face, his features soft and relaxed.

Lucas takes the opportunity to sit up slightly and cast his eyes around Eliott’s room, the space lit by the morning sun. The room is cluttered in an artsy way, with books, pens, and papers scattered around. He spots a piano in the corner, and above it hangs several drawings of raccoons and hedgehogs in different angles. His eyes are drawn to one particular drawing, however, of what looks like a rough sketch of a boy’s face. The nose and cheekbones are sharp, and the wide eyes look really familiar….

Lucas’s musings are interrupted by a large hand on his waist and the back of his head, pulling him back down. Lucas falls down onto Eliott’s chest with an “oof” and feels Eliott rumble with laughter underneath him. Lucas lifts his head up to look Eliott in the eye, smiling when he sees Eliott looking back sleepily.

“Did you sleep well?” Eliott asks, voice deep and scratchy.

Lucas nods, suddenly feeling bashful at laying on top of Eliott while naked. He squirms a bit as if to get up, but Eliott tightens his hold with an impish grin. “And where do you think you’re going?”

Lucas gives up and rolls his eyes. “I need to check my phone. Mika is probably freaking out that I didn’t come home last night.”

Eliott huffs a sigh and lets him get up, as if it was the hardest thing he had to do. Lucas snickers and rummages for his phone, still tucked into the pocket of his trousers that were on the floor. He lifts himself back onto the bed next to Eliott, ignoring the way Eliott’s eyes were fastened on the side of his face. He has several texts from Mika, the gang group chat, and his mom. He quickly texts Mika, assuring him that he’s fine and he’ll be home later. He then opens the group chat, rolling his eyes at Basile’s latest rant about not finding love.

“You’re beautiful.”

Lucas rips his eyes from his phone to look at Eliott, who looks completely at ease with what he just said. Lucas feels his face heat up and averts his eyes from Eliott’s soft, but amused gaze.

“Shut up, I am not. You must be confusing me with yourself,” Lucas retorts, realizing belatedly that he just implied Eliott was beautiful. Oh well, he _is_ after all.

Eliott’s eyebrows raise dramatically, and before Lucas can do anything to stop him, Eliott manhandles Lucas to be underneath him, placing his arms around Lucas’s head. Lucas is trying very hard not to avert his eyes, but Eliott is making it really difficult with the intense way he’s looking down at him right now.

“You’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen,” Eliott starts seriously. “Everything about you brings so much…light.”

Lucas looks up at him wide-eyed, a small, pleased smile gracing his lips. Eliott smiles broadly in response. The moment is interrupted by Lucas’s phone buzzing again with more texts. Eliott rolls off him as Lucas reaches for his phone, his smile dropping as he sees three texts from his mom.

He opens them and feels his heart stutter painfully.

**Lucas, my dear, be careful as the darkness approaches.**

**I don’t think I’ll be here for long.**

**It’ll be what I deserve.**

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Eliott is looking at him concernedly, his eyebrows drawn together.

Lucas takes a deep breath in, trying not to cry. “It’s nothing, really.”

“Lucas,” Eliott says firmly, eyes still full of worry.

Lucas lets out a shuddering breath. “It’s my mom. She’s…not well.”

“Is she ill?”

“She’s ill, mentally.” Lucas shuts his eyes tightly. “She thinks the world is ending and she gets into these moods where I’m worried she’ll do something bad to herself.”

Lucas feels the tears prickle hotly despite his best efforts to stop them. Eliott pulls Lucas towards him and Lucas buries his face into Eliott’s chest. Eliott rubs soothing circles into his back.

Voice muffled by Eliott’s chest, Lucas continues tearfully. “It’s just been so hard. I don’t know what to do and my dad isn’t around to help…I just wish everything was normal.”

The circles on his back stop, but Eliott continues to hold him. Lucas tries to even his breathing before pushing back, exhaling shakily. Eliott’s hand comes up to brush away the tears so gently, it almost makes Lucas want to cry again. Eliott’s face holds a strange mixture of emotions that Lucas can’t make out.

Lucas pulls himself together and quietly says, “I should probably go. I’ll need to go visit my mom.”

Eliott only nods, his face still holding that strange, pinched look. They get dressed silently and Eliott walks Lucas to the front door. Lucas stands there, feeling a bit awkward, both from the activities of last night and his crying episode.

He clears his throat. “Thank you, um, for last night. I had a good time,” he says with a small smile.

Eliott’s lips turn up as well, but the smile doesn’t seem to reach his eyes.

“I’ll see you Monday?” Lucas asks hesitatingly.

Eliott simply nods again. Lucas bites his lip and begins to turn around to walk out, but Eliott grabs him by the arm and places a searing kiss upon his lips. When he’s let go, Eliott runs a gentle hand through Lucas’s messy hair, trailing it down the side of Lucas’s face before stepping back.

“Goodbye, Lucas,” Eliott says softly.

Stunned by the kiss still, Lucas nods dumbly and walks away. He feels unsettled.

* * *

 

Lucas leaves the clinic later that afternoon feeling drained, but a little bit better. His mom wasn’t that responsive at first, but she slowly opened up to him after a bit of talking. She even smiled once.

Lucas lets himself back into the coloc, ready to fall asleep again, but knowing he should definitely get some homework done since this upcoming week was going to be hectic. Lucas grimaces thinking about how crazy Daphné was going to be now that the performance is a week away. Arthur already complained in the group chat that she was making the technical team come in on a Sunday to work on some things.

Lucas sits down at his desk, pulling his books out, but absolutely does not feel like doing work. He looks at his phone and wonders if it would be too needy to text Eliott after just seeing him a few hours earlier…

He’s unable to resist the temptation, however, and types out: **Hey, I visited my mom and she’s doing better now. Thanks for listening to me earlier, I’m sorry I just kinda sprung that on you. Thanks again for the date too, I’d like to do that again sometime.**

He wonders if he should mention the ahem, activities that followed after, but decided he wasn’t gutsy enough to type anything about that. He receives two texts from Eliott a few agonizing minutes later.

**I’m glad she’s doing alright. And never apologize for your feelings, it was totally fine.**

**I had a good time too…but perhaps we are going too fast. It’s nothing to do with you, but I think I need some time. I’m sorry.**

For the second time that day, Lucas feels like he’s been punched in the chest. Now nearing towards night time, his room is dimly lit and he feels suffocated by the growing the darkness. Feeling like he can’t breathe, he breaks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry, Lulu.
> 
> Comments and kudos are loved and appreciated!


	9. Only thing I will ever see

Lucas’s eyes are burning, tiredness resting heavily in his bones. He hadn’t been able to fall asleep at all last night, his mind alternating between running in circles and numbness. His mind was back to the running in circles setting currently- _What happened?_

Lucas analyzes every memory of his time with Eliott yesterday, trying to come up with something, anything, that would’ve made Eliott decide to break things off. _Or was there even anything to break off?_ Lucas rubs his eyes furiously before reaching for his phone. It was still early, but the thought of going to classes and, he gulps, rehearsals, felt like almost too much. What would he even say to Eliott? Should he say anything? Eliott made it pretty clear that he wanted space.

Lucas feels the telltale prick behind his eyes and pulls the covers over head with a frustrated huff. _It had to have been the stuff with his mom_ , Lucas thinks agitatedly. Eliott was freaked out by the whole thing and now wanted nothing to do with Lucas and the craziness he has to go through. Or what if Eliott had gotten what he wanted and now was tired of Lucas? Lucas feels his chest clench painfully at the thought. _No_ , he thinks, _that doesn’t seem like something Eliott would do at all._

Lucas’s increasingly depressive musings are interrupted by an incoming call from Daphné. He hesitates answering, not in the mood to deal with a frantic Daphné this early in the morning, but ultimately decides that not answering her phone calls would mean a worse scolding later.

“Hello?” Lucas knows he sounds downtrodden, but he can’t help it.

“Lucas, hi! So-wait a minute, are you okay?”

Lucas clears his throat, “yeah, yeah, fine. Just woke up.”

“Okay, so good news and bad news. Bad news is that you know, Julia, pretty girl with the dark hair?”

Lucas doesn’t know her, in fact, but hums anyway.

“So she was supposed to be our pianist for some of the musical numbers, but she can’t be available this week! Can you believe this? The last week of rehearsals too! Something about the flu, which personally Lucas, I think is a big fat lie, she probably just wants to hang out with that stoner boyfriend of hers-“

Lucas feels himself tuning out, and interrupts, “And the good news then, is?”

Daphné pauses then says, “Well the good news is that we have a replacement.”

“So why are you telling me this?”

“Well, I was thinking, the replacement, at least for this last week, could be…you?”

Lucas is silent for a moment, not processing this. “Um, what?”

Daphné rushes to explain, “It would only be for this week! Julia will still be able to play for the final performance. We just need someone to fill in as we sing!”

“Daphné, have you managed to forget that I already have a part in this play? As one of the leads??”

“Yes, yes I know, and you would still sing and everything, just at the piano. And it’s not for every song either! Oh please, Lucas please? I am stretched to my limit here, and there’s really no one else. Yann said you could play really well.”

Lucas was going to rip Yann’s tongue out. “Ugh. Fine. I’ll do it.”

He has to hold the phone away from his ear as Daphné squeals.

“Okay, great Lucas, thank you! Meet me at the theater after lunch, okay? I’ll give you the sheet music so you can practice a bit before rehearsals.”

“But I have literature after lunch-“

“Don’t worry about that! I’ll get you excused!”

“What?-“

“Bye Lucas!”

Daphné hangs up before Lucas could say another word. He flops back down on his bed with a huff, realizing he was going to have to face Eliott today after all.

* * *

 

Lucas wearily heads into the theater that afternoon with trepidation. He spots Daphné talking with Emma down in the orchestra box and walks over, trying to force a smile when they both greet him with delighted shouts.

“Lucas!” Daphné comes running toward him.

“Thanks so much again for doing this,” she says as she shoves sheet music into his hands and starts steering him to the piano that sits in the far corner of the stage.

“So practice these, you’ll only be playing two songs today!” She gives him a quick kiss on the cheek in gratitude before rushing back to Emma and the technical crew, who had just arrived.

Lucas sits at the bench and places the sheet music up, deciding he’ll start with ‘All I Ask of You’ since it looks a little bit easier. He takes a deep breath, pushing all other negative thoughts out of his head, and begins to practice.

Lucas had been playing for over an hour now, finding that focusing on the notes made a wonderful distraction from the storm inside his head. He’s playing ‘All I Ask of You’ smoothly now, unconsciously singing the words to it quietly.

_“Say you’ll share with me one love, one lifetime. Say the word and I will follow you…”_

He’s startled out of his little performance by a hard clap on his shoulders. Yann towers over him, a grin stretched wide on his face.

“Look at you, playing again. It sounds great, Lucas!”

Lucas had half a mind to tell Yann off for getting him into this in the first place, but is unable to draw up the anger at the sight of his happily crinkled eyes.

Lucas sighs as he stands up to stretch. “Thanks, man. It’s…nice to get back into it.”

Yann claps him on the back again before wandering off to find Basile. Most of the cast and crew were here now, but as Lucas scans his eyes over to theater, he doesn’t catch sight of a messy head of hair.

* * *

 

Eliott isn’t at rehearsals on Tuesday either. Nor on Wednesday, but Lucas did overhear Alex on the phone speaking lowly and quickly.

“Eliott I swear to god, you’d better be at rehearsals tomorrow or Daphné will rip my balls off. Mine AND yours.”

Alex is silent for a moment, listening to whatever Eliott has to say. “Dude, seriously? It can’t be that bad. I’m sure he-“

Alex is clearly interrupted, and his face is growing more agitated by the second. Lucas pretended to be folding costumes nearby.

“Look man, we don’t have time for this. I know this is hard for you or whatever, given your feelings and shit, but the performance is _this_ Saturday. Be.Here.Tomorrow.”

* * *

 

Lucas does see Eliott on Thursday. Despite himself, he feels a rush of warmth at the sight of the worn, brown jacket and the hunched shoulders. Eliott has his back to Lucas and is currently on the receiving end of what looks like a vicious scolding from Daphné. It’s Imane who places a hand on her shoulder saying, “Come on Daph, leave the boy alone. He’s here now isn’t he?”

Daphné huffs but clearly lets Eliott off the hook and just tells him to get dressed in his costume. Lucas sees Eliott run a rough hand through his hair and turn around, their eyes catching immediately.

Lucas feels as though the rest of the world is muted as he stares into those blue-gray depths. As he looks closer though, he finds that Eliott looks…terrible. Handsome as always of course in Lucas’s opinion, but there’s lines around his mouth and a deep purple colors the skin beneath his eyes.

Lucas takes a hesitant step forward, but is interrupted by Daphné saying that they’ll be running through the whole play and everyone had better be ready in the next twenty minutes. Frightened by her glare, people begin to hurriedly go put on their costumes and set up.

The beginning of the play runs smoothly, Lucas not being distracted since the Phantom doesn’t show up until almost the middle of the performance. He’s sitting at the piano getting ready to play the ‘Angel of Music.’ He shivers when he hears Eliott’s voice, hidden out of sight, sing:

_Brava, Brava, Bravissima_

Alexia and Manon say their lines before beginning to sing, prompting Lucas to start the tinkling notes of the song. He feels the hair on the back of his neck stand on end as though someone is staring at him, but he resolutely keeps his eyes on the music.

The rest of rehearsals run quickly, the group only stopping twice to fix some choreography mistakes that Sofiane pointed out. It’s getting close to 10pm now, but Daphné insisted that they run through the Phantom’s lair scene once more.

* * *

 

Lucas sits back in a rickety fold-up chair off stage, watching Eliott and Manon interact on stage. He hears the scraping of another chair being pulled up next to him and he whips his head around to find Alex, of all people, sitting there staring ahead at the stage.

Lucas sits silently for a moment, wondering if he should ask what’s up, but Alex speaks up instead.

“What’s going on between you and Eliott?”

Lucas stares at Alex, eyes wide in panic. “Nothing’s up. What do you m-mean?” Lucas curses himself internally for stuttering.

Alex meets his stare, eyes hard. “Something’s up. Eliott hasn’t shut up about you since school started and now suddenly he’s not saying a word? Very suspicious since you guys had met up last Saturday.”

Lucas doesn’t like the accusatory tone in Alex’s voice but is hit with a realization.

“What do you mean since school started?”

Alex scoffs. “Like you don’t know?”

Alex’s expression softens at Lucas’s wide-eyed confusion. “Oh. You don’t.”

“Know what?” Lucas asks.

Alex shifts his gaze back to Eliott and Manon on stage and mutters, “well he does like his secrets.”

“Alex.” Lucas tries again. “What do you mean he’s been talking about me since school started?”

Alex sighs and says, “It’s not for me to tell, man. Look, just talk to him alright?”

It’s Lucas’s turn to sigh and he looks back at the stage, too. “I’ve tried.”

“He doesn’t want to see me,” he says quietly, trying and failing not to let despair color his voice.

“Just try again, okay? Trust me.” Alex stands up to clap as Eliott and Manon bow at the end of their scene, and Lucas follows the movement mechanically. His eyes and mind, however, are trained on Eliott, who glances back off stage and meets Lucas’s gaze. There’s a resignation in his face, but Lucas knows that it means that they can talk later.

* * *

 

It’s nearing midnight when finally, _finally_ Daphné allows them to leave. Lucas, having not slept well lately, feels as though he might pass out from exhaustion. He’s sluggishly packed up his stuff and cranes his head around looking for Eliott, spotting him talking to Manon. He swallows down the familiar surge of irritation and begins to make his way over, only to be stopped by James.

His blonde hair is tucked under a cap and he sports a nervous sort of expression as he fiddles with the strap of his backpack.

“Hey, Lucas. Do you have a minute?”

Lucas really didn’t, but was unsure how to vocalize this without sounding like a complete dick. Eyes still trained on the back of Eliott’s head, he responds, “Um. Yeah, just a minute I guess.”

“I’ll get straight to the point then. Um. I really like you, Lucas.”

Lucas tears his eyes away and looks at James in surprise. James looks back intently, green (or are they hazel, Lucas can’t really tell) eyes trained on Lucas’s face, looking for a reaction.

“I, I um-“ Lucas stutters out, but he has no clue how to respond to this. Why did James have to tell him this _now_? Why couldn’t he have kept ignoring him as usual? Lucas thinks despairingly.

He’s saved from answering, however, when a warm hand comes to rest upon his shoulder. Lucas looks up to see Eliott, who he had never even saw move, standing close behind him, his stance and lingering hand a possessive-looking gesture. Eliott has his gaze fixed on James, face carefully blank, but addresses Lucas.

“Hey, Lucas, I believe you wanted to talk?”

Lucas said no such thing, but seized the opportunity to leave James and this awkward situation.

“Um yeah, yes. Sorry, James, uh we can talk another time?”

Without waiting on James to respond, Eliott fully drapes his arm around Lucas, gently steering him away. If this was any other time, Lucas would’ve laughed at the blatantly jealous move. This was different, however, as once they were in a corner of the theater alone, Eliott dropped his arm and moved several paces away from Lucas.

They stand still in silence, staring at each other.

“Eliott, what happened?”

“How’ve you been, Lucas?”

They spoke at the same time, but Lucas decides to answer first.

“How’ve I been? Well if you must know Eliott, not well.” Lucas knows his eyes are as hard as his voice, given the way Eliott flinches minutely.

Lucas lowers his voice, “What happened, Eliott? Everything was fine, great even, and then just out of nowhere, you decide to break things off?”

Eliott leans forward, quickly speaking. “We-we were going too fast, Lucas, that’s all.”

“And did you decide that before or after we spent the night together?”

Eliott’s face, previously carefully closed off, broke and formed a horrified expression.

“What? What, Lucas no! That’s not it at all,” Eliott says with such conviction that Lucas immediately feels some of the tension leave his body.

Voice small and unsure, Lucas replies, “Then what was it?”

Eliott flounders for a moment, opening and closing his mouth when nothing would come out. He lets out a harsh breath and scrubs his face. “It’s complicated, Lucas.”

He holds up a hand when he sees Lucas open up his mouth. “Please let me finish. It’s complicated…for reasons I’m not sure I’m ready to tell you about. I just felt it was going too fast and-“

He broke off suddenly. Lucas, not letting Eliott off the hook so easy, aggressively says, “And what?”

Eliott shuts his eyes tightly for a second before opening them, his gaze so sad, Lucas almost regrets asking. Almost.

“I’m not good for you, Lucas.”

“What…what does that even mean, Eliott? Of course you are.” Lucas steps closer, intending to touch Eliott, but Eliott moves out of reach.

He shakes his head. “You don’t understand, Lucas. I…I’ve got darkness and a lot of shit, and this just isn’t going to be good for you.”

“You’re right about one thing, I don’t understand.” Lucas steels himself. “But I do understand that I’m in lo-“

“Eliott! There you are!”

He and Eliott both whip around to see a brunette woman walking towards them. She looks vaguely familiar to Lucas.

“Lucille…what’re you doing here?” Eliott’s voice is harsh, but also nervous sounding.

_Lucille? The ex, Lucille?_

She stops in front of them. “I got worried that you didn’t go back to your apartment. You know it’s not good to be pushing yourself so soon after-“

She stops herself and looks at Lucas, as if just realizing he was there. She smiles prettily, all bossy tones from before gone, as she introduces herself.

“Hi, I’m Lucille.” She reaches out a hand, and Lucas slowly takes it.

“Lucas.”

He’d only said his name, but he was shocked to watch how her face turned from open and friendly to a disgusted sort of grimace.

“Lucille. You need to go. I don’t need a babysitter,” Eliott says sternly, his tone filled with a warning edge.

Lucille turns to him, grimace still in place. “So you’re still talking to him, huh? Figures. Even after everything I’ve-“

“Excuse me, I have to go,” Lucas interrupts. He wasn’t about to get in the middle of a lovers’ spat, especially not with Eliott’s…girlfriend?

Without looking at either of them, Lucas pushes past and speed walks to the exit, pretending he doesn’t hear Eliott saying something exasperatedly to Lucille. He thinks he hears his name being called, but he only walks faster.

Back at the coloc, Lucas tosses and turns in his bed. He was exhausted but he couldn’t sleep. He felt so, so stupid and curses himself for even trying to talk to Eliott. He feels a quiet, helpless sort of rage build up as he thinks about Lucille. Pretty Lucille. Lucas huffs and tosses again, determinedly shutting his eyes. He hears a notification on his phone go off, but he ignores it. Sleep eventually comes.

* * *

 

Lucas wakes up Friday morning feeling unsatisfyingly rested. There’s a sort of numbness that prevents his limbs from working properly, but a couple dings from his phone spurs him into action. He pulls his phone toward him with a sigh, figuring it was the gang group chat.

Lucas feels his eyebrows draw together. He’s got multiple notifications from an Instagram user Srodulv. He opens his notifications and sees that the user has followed him and, his eyebrows now raise to his hairline, liked all of his posts? Every single one of his posts were liked.

Intrigued, Lucas clicks on the profile. The profile picture is some dark artsy sort of thing and only follows Lucas. Fully curious now, Lucas scrolls through the profile seeing drawings of….

He would know that raccoon and hedgehog sketch anywhere. Another notification pops up that he’s been tagged in a photo. This photo was posted five months ago, and it’s of the boy’s face that Lucas had seen hung up in Eliott’s bedroom. The caption reads:

_You’re the only thing I saw and will always see._

Lucas feels as if his heart is about to pound out of his chest and so no one can blame him for the mini-heart attack he gets when he suddenly receives a text from Eliott.

**We have a conversation to finish, don’t we? Meet me under the stage after rehearsals.**

Lucas sits there, fully dumbfounded, and simply responds: **Ok**

As Lucas continues to sit there in his stupor, the sun rises fully, blessing his room with a soft glow. Another notification on his phone pops up, this time tagging him in a photo of a raccoon looking wistfully after a hedgehog. Eliott had put his name over the hedgehog.

Lucas can’t help but grin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Getting close to the end! I have two endings in mind, one happy and one not so happy-so please leave comments if you have a preference! 
> 
> Thanks for reading! x


	10. Through his eyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I am terribly, terribly sorry for the long wait! I hope 10K words in Eliott's POV makes up for it!

“Lucille, look I’m sorry but I don’t think it’s going to work out.” Eliott huffs into the phone, raking a hand through his hair. He doesn’t know why Lucille had to choose today of all days to bring up their breakup when she had been totally fine when it had happened. Encouraged it even.

“Lucille,” Eliott interrupts, “I’ve got class in twenty minutes and I can’t miss. First day and all.”

Lucille huffs angrily but allows him to hang-up, and he pockets his phone. He’s at the school gates and now without Lucille to distract him, he feels the anxiety rising up his throat like bile. _What if all goes wrong again? What if…_

Eliott shakes his head of the negative thoughts and moves forward, trying to ignore people’s eyes on him. He’s zoned out when it happens. His shoulder hits another’s but the person doesn’t stop. He looks behind him, ready to do something, he doesn’t know what, but his brain short-circuits at the sight before him. It’s a boy that he bumped into- a _beautiful_ one. He feels breathless at the faint sound of his laughter and is stunned by the brightness and energy coming off him as he talks to his friends. In a stupor, he belatedly realizes that he’s stopped in the middle of the hallway and he’s getting disgruntled looks from other students as they have to make their way around him. He ducks his head embarrassedly and hurries forward to find his classroom, ears still ringing with the sound of the boy’s laughter.

* * *

 

He makes it in time amazingly, and he’s seated next to tough-looking guy apparently named Alex. Alex seems nice, willingly having gave Eliott his notes and comments about people to avoid in school. He definitely wasn’t going to take one of Monsieur Robart’s classes after what Alex has told him.

He follows Alex dutifully once class is over-he already knows he’s going to hate his math class-and allows Alex to chatter about his friends and some girl named Emma. He and Alex have the next class together too, gym, which makes Eliott groan internally. He’s glad that he’s got Alex now, who for whatever reason has seemed to have taken a liking to him.

“Okay man, whatever you do, don’t look Jacques in the eyes. He’s super competitive and will absolutely demolish anyone who looks at him too long.”

Eliott has no idea who Jacques is, but nods his head anyway in understanding. “Also,” Alex has a sly look on his face, “don’t let the ladies trip you up. Goodness knows they’ll all be trying to talk to you.”

Eliott isn’t worried about this. He knows women, and sometimes men, like to talk to him for whatever reason, but he’s not interested. _Well, he wouldn’t mind if one boy in particular wanted to talk to him._

As if his thoughts conjured him, the bright boy from this morning was suddenly there before him. Well, Eliott could see him through the gym window, playing basketball with the rest of his classmates. He was laughing at something a curly-haired guy was saying, raking a hand through his hair and shaking his head delightedly. Eliott feels the corners of his mouth tilting upwards, unable to stop himself at the sight of the boy laughing.

“YO.”

Eliott is startled out of his voyeurism at the sound of Alex’s voice right next to his ear. “What’re you looking at man? One of the first year ladies?” Alex laughs as he looks through the window too. His brows dip in confusion when he sees it’s just the first year boys in there.

Eliott squares his shoulders, thinking he’s about to encounter some hostility from Alex, but when Alex looks back at him, the confusion is gone from his expression and smugness is there instead.

“Yo. You’re into Lucas?”

Eliott is shocked at how Alex was able to pinpoint which boy out of at least the twenty in there he was looking at. “How..”

Alex shrugs and interrupts, “Lucas is the best looking guy in first year. It’s not hard to guess who you were looking at. Now come on, lover boy, we gotta get changed.”

Eliott hurries to follow him, but not before looking through the window one last time at the boy who was now drinking a bottle of water. _Lucas._

* * *

 

He knows he’s obsessed, but he can’t _help_ it. Almost two months have gone by since he’s started school, but he hasn’t managed to speak to Lucas at least once. He instead spends all his time discretely looking at him across the cafeteria or peeking a glance at him while in gym class. Alex has called him out on this every time, making fun of him for being such a loser.

“Dude,” he starts laughing when Eliott not so gently ran into a locker after seeing Lucas down the hallway talking to some brown-haired girl. He looked _so cute_ today in that blue button-down shirt.

Alex is still laughing as Eliott flushes at running into the locker, trying to play it cool. “Dude, just talk to him. If you don’t do it soon you’re gonna end up with a concussion from running into lockers every time you see him.”

“I will,” Eliott hisses. “I just need to figure out what I’m going to say to him.”

Alex shakes his head at Eliott exasperatedly, as he’s heard this same answer for the past two months now. “Whatever man. Are you still down for meeting up at my place tonight? It’ll be pretty lowkey.”

Eliott doesn’t really want to, he’d rather go home and draw, maybe smoke, but he knows that it would be good for him to get out and socialize more. “Yeah, I’ll be there.”

“Cool. Bring the beers and the swagger Demaury!” Alex winks and heads off, catching up with the girl Eliott has now identified as Alex’s crush Emma.

He looks back down the hall and is disappointed to see that Lucas has disappeared.

* * *

 

Eliott’s seated on Alex’s couch, trying and failing to stay tuned in to whatever Amelie (or was it Julie?) was saying. He’s saved by Alex, who comes rushing toward him, phone in hand. “Hey, how good are you at singing?”

“Uh. I’m alright at it I guess, I’m not a professional or anything though,” Eliott says bewilderedly.

Alex’s face lights up though, and he says “cool, let’s go. There’s a meeting at school.”

Eliott apologizes quickly to Amelie/Julie and grabs his coat. Alex finally lets him know what the hell they’re doing once they’re on the bus.

“Okay so Emma’s texted me,” he starts excitedly, and Eliott rolls his eyes. “And her friends are trying to put on some sort of play, Phantom something. She said they’re lacking in male performers and asked if I had any friends that could try out! So, that’s what we’re about to do.”

Eliott blanches at this. “Alex! You can’t just make me try out for, what, Phantom of the Opera? I said I’m okay at singing, not that I _wanted_ to!”

Alex, however, is undeterred at Eliott’s anger and instead keeps silent, a sly look on his face.

* * *

 

Eliott doesn’t know whether to thank Alex or kill him. He tried out and got the position as the Phantom, he doesn’t feel super great about that, but Lucas is here. _LUCAS._ When Daphné introduced both of them, he made an absolute fool of himself. Lucas was standing much too close and he didn’t dare look him in the eye, even as he introduced himself. He knows he came off looking like a dick, but just having Lucas in such a close vicinity after months of dreaming about this moment is making Eliott shaky and on edge. He has to get out there before he says something stupid like “hey Lucas, I’ve been stalking you around school and on Instagram for several months now. Do you want to go out with me?”

Alex is looking at him with mirth in his eyes right now like he knows exactly the kind of trainwreck going on in Eliott’s head right now. Eliott is distracted once more by Lucas singing with Manon, who really seemed like a lovely person, but Eliott is too out of it to really get to know her properly right now. He hears Lucas let out a bright little laugh at something Manon says, and yeah, he’s gotta leave like right now.

He begs Alex with his eyes and Alex rolls his, relenting at Eliott’s desperate look. As they leave, Eliott promises Alex that he’ll get it together by the next meeting.

* * *

 

He doesn’t get it together. But he is able to stay in the same room as Lucas at least. It is both exhilarating and pure torture, however. On the one hand, Eliott now gets to see Lucas close-up almost daily, thus getting to see all of his expressions, how he rolls his eyes at Basile, how he seems gentle with Manon. On the other hand, Eliott is _absolutely fucked_. He came to this realization during one rehearsal when he sees Lucas looking serious for once, pouring over the script. Yann had went up and showed him apparently something funny on his phone, because one second Lucas was stone-faced, and the next, a blinding smile had spread on his face. His eyes were impossibly blue, and small dimples appeared on his cheeks. He looked stunning.

 _He’s got to do something about this crush_ he thinks, his heart thumping wildly. He’s interrupted out of his musings by Alex, who declares they’re going to a party this Friday at some girl named Chloé’s house. He doesn’t retort, too distracted by the way Lucas was now gesturing to Yann, the wide smile still etched on his face.

* * *

 

He’s at the party and out of weakness, he invited Lucille. He doesn’t know why he did really, but he knows it probably had something to do with how out of control he feels around a certain blue-eyed boy. Lucille always kept him calm, so he’s hoping that she’ll be able to do the same tonight.

No such luck. He spots Lucas in the kitchen with who he presumes to be Chloé and she’s standing awfully close to him. Lucas flits his eyes up suddenly and finds Eliott. Eliott feels terribly uncomfortable with his arm around Lucille now as he sees how Lucas’s eyes drift over the pair of them slowly before turning back to Chloé.

Eliott steels himself with courage drawn out of somewhere, telling Lucille he’s getting them drinks. He makes it to the kitchen without Lucas noticing, but as he reaches for a beer, so does Lucas, their hands brushing. Eliott yanks back his hand, feeling as though he’d been burned. Lucas is looking directly at him now but then drops his eyes, his face hardening. Before Eliott can get a word out, Lucas mutters out a “sorry” and walks out. Eliott, hand still tingling, is left feeling oddly bereft but silently gets the beers and makes his way back to Lucille.

* * *

 

He’s going to do it. Today he’s going to talk to Lucas one-on-one. After the party, he agonized over Lucas’s reaction. _What was that? Why did he seem angry?_ He realized he’s been acting really stand-offish and maybe Lucas thinks he hates him. That won’t do at all. And so, now he sits next to Lucas, explaining the script and trying to ignore the heat of lucas’s knee brushing against his.

He’s absolutely enamored with Lucas’s stubbornness and the way he bunches up his face confusedly about the script. He tries explaining the Phantom’s actions, but he doesn’t know if he’s doing a good job because Lucas is still arguing that the Phantom is a weird psychopath. Honestly, he’s just trying not to feel too dizzy right now at the smell of Lucas’s hair. _It smells like chamomile._

“He loves her,” he says. “Hmph, he’s got a weird way of showing it then,” Lucas responds. Eliott almost smiles at the sassy answer. They talk some more about the script, but all Eliott can focus on is the knowledge that up close, Lucas has a small mole on his neck and his eyelashes are so long, they brush against his upper cheeks. He’s startled out of his investigation of Lucas by Alex demanding it’s late and it’s time to go. He rushes up quickly, trying not to miss the warmth against his leg, and grabs once last glance at Lucas.

* * *

 

He knows he probably shouldn’t be drawing Lucas’s face during rehearsals, not because he thinks it’s creepy as Alex keeps telling him, but because he really should be working. He’s missed a lot of practices due to not feeling his best, and Daphné is now glaring at him. He sighs and gets up to work with Manon, who he really does like, and not just because she drops tidbits about Lucas throughout their conversations. He knows that Lucas lives with her and a couple other roommates and he’s apparently really grumpy in the mornings, which makes him smile fondly.

Lucas looks rather grumpy right now, he notices. He flicks his eyes subtly towards him and notices that he’s glaring at…Manon? Normally he’s very soft with her so that’s confusing. Daphné starts speaking, introducing, oh no…Sofiane.

Eliott’s eyes meet Sofiane’s, but Sofiane’s eyes hold no hostility and instead look kind. He gives him a small smile, which Sofiane returns, and Eliott feels a weight lift off his shoulders. Looks like they’ll be okay after all. He knows they’ll have to talk eventually, but he feels happy. Not even Daphné’s announcement that they’re going to start the choreography could deter his spirits.

The Masquerade scene is rather fun, in Eliott’s opinion. Something about the costumes and his mask makes him feel more powerful, more in control of himself. He’s singing his part now, stalking confidently towards Manon. But of course, he can’t help himself and his eyes drift minutely towards Lucas, who’s standing next to her. Lucas looks different. He’s staring at Eliott with wide eyes and lips parted, and a  blush is spread prettily across his face. He looks as though he might when…Eliott violently turns his thoughts out of that direction, not wanting to deal with any sort of, ahem, problem right now.

He’s mercifully able to complete the sequence, but out of the corner of his eye, he sees Lucas subtly adjust himself in his trousers. That image was not seared in Eliott’s mind, it wasn’t. And Eliott certainly did not think of that image or of Lucas dressed up in those tight trousers that night as he lay in bed. He didn’t.

* * *

 

Eliott feels like he and Lucas are dancing around something. They’ve talked several more times, now that Eliott has finally managed to somewhat calm himself.  And he notices that Lucas is opening up to him more and more. They’re rehearsing now, and Eliott feels like he’s on some sort of high after causing Lucas to laugh at something he said earlier. He doesn’t even remember what he said, but it doesn’t matter because Lucas thinks he’s funny and that’s enough to keep Eliott smiling like a lunatic. He’s talking animatedly with Alex about raccoons, which Alex indulges, before he nudges Eliott in the rib, nodding his head toward the front of the room.

Lucas and Manon are performing ‘All I Ask of You’ again, and Eliott finds himself transfixed once again over the sound of Lucas’s soft singing voice. Normally, they just sing their lines, but Eliott watches, horrified, as they inch closer to each other apparently aiming to do the kiss between Raoul and Christine. He feels his chest tighten painfully as he watches Lucas and Manon close the gap between their lips in what feels like slow-motion and kiss each other deeply. The rest of the room claps when the song ends, a couple of people whistling, but Eliott feels as though he’s been made into stone. When Lucas’s eyes meet his, he has no idea what expression must be gracing his face right now but he doubts it’s pleasant.

* * *

 

He knows he’s being stupid. He’s been thinking about that kiss between Lucas and Manon for days now, but he can’t seem to help himself. He’s a sadist apparently and he’s currently sitting in Sofiane’s apartment sulking with a beer in hand. He and Sofiane had talked it all out about his…past history and it was all fine now, but Sofiane is currently looking at Eliott exasperatedly.

“Eliott,” he says sternly. Eliott doesn’t look at him. “Eliott,” he says again, more loudly.

He looks up dejectedly and he sees Sofiane’s lips twitch. “Eliott you look like someone has kicked your puppy.”

He doesn’t deign Sofiane with a response, deciding instead to take another swig from his beer. Maybe he should drink five more of these.

“Eliott, you know they have to kiss right? Like it’s part of the play, it doesn’t mean anything.”

He does know this logically, but still. They live together, what if they’re hooking up at home? What if they actually like each other? They are close!

Sofiane is staring at him hard, and Eliott thinks he might’ve said all that out loud. “Eliott,” he starts gently. “You really like him, don’t you?”

Eliott simply nods, not trusting his voice. Sofiane sighs and comes to sit next to Eliott, wrapping one arm securely around his shoulders. “Then tell him,” he says.

Eliott’s eyes dart to Sofiane’s and he begins shaking his head. “Oh no, no way.”

“Why not?”

Sofiane’s eyes are too kind, and Eliott finds himself looking away before answering. “You don’t get it, Sofi. I’m…I can’t do that to him. I’ll mess it up, like I always do.”

Sofiane pulls Eliott’s face toward him, hard. “You do NOT always mess things up, Eliott. Lucas would be a very lucky guy to have you, and for the record, I think he’s very into you too. At least,” Sofiane lets go of him and shifts back a little, smirking. “That’s what Imane says.”

Eliott feels his heart beating quickly and he knows his face looks too eager. “What? Did he say something to Imane about me?”

Sofiane laughs gently. “He sure did.”

“W-what did he say?”

Sofiane just shakes his head though. “I can’t tell you that, that would be betraying Imane’s trust. But he’s interested and I think you should ask him out.”

Eliott feels too hot, but he’s elated. _Lucas talks about him to his friends? He’s interested in Eliott?_ It seems too good to be true, but he feels some confidence swelling up and he knows he’s beaming now.

“I just might,” he says. Sofiane grins and claps him on the back.

* * *

 

Daphné, who is equally both terrifying and awe-inspiring in her determination, has managed to score the group a theater to work in. He spots Lucas heading to look for some staging tape and internally sighs at how he was going to broach the subject of going on a date. He had been determined to do it, and he still was, but he was floundering on how to bring it up.

He had been working with Manon for thirty minutes but Lucas was still gone. _What if he got lost down there?_ Feeling more concerned than he probably has the right to be, he excuses himself to Manon and grabs a flashlight before heading downstairs.

It was definitely dark and the whole place had a creepy vibe that made goosebumps raise on Eliott’s skin. He listens carefully for any footsteps and thinks he hears something two rooms down. He quickly makes his way there, spotting Lucas’s small figure in the distance. Just as it looks like Lucas touched a spiderweb, he backs up quickly, straight into Eliott’s arms. Lucas lets out a startled yell, but rather than pushing Eliott away as he expected, Lucas buries his face into Eliott’s chest.

Eliott gaps as he feels Lucas breathing quickly into his chest and his hands were gripping Eliott’s shirt tightly. On instinct, he feels himself tense and then slowly raises his arms to circle around Lucas’s waist. Lucas moves impossibly closer, snuggling himself into Eliott and Eliott thinks he might die from the cuteness. He knows Lucas is frightened, but when he feels Lucas pull away a bit, he tightens his hold, unwilling to let him go just yet. And so they stand there pressed up against each other, and the feeling of Lucas so close, the wonderful smell of his hair, the warmth radiating from him has Eliott swaying on his feet.

They’re interrupted by Emma, and Lucas jumps off of him. He tries to not look at Lucas for the rest of the evening, worried that if he does, he’ll spill it all right then and there.

* * *

 

Eliott feels like he’s going insane. He thinks about Lucas all the time now and his sketchbook is filled with drawings of Lucas’s profile and of little hedgehogs and raccoons. He knows that if someone were to look at this out of context, he would definitely look like some sort of stalker. He snorts to himself as he realizes he’s basically turned into the Phantom and Lucas is his Christine.

He has to ask Lucas out tonight after rehearsals, he can’t stand it any longer. He methodically goes  through his parts, belatedly realizing that he and Manon were going to have to do the kiss scene between the Phantom and Christine tonight. He does feel affected by the lyrics, however, feeling them brush too close to home. When he and Manon kiss, he wonders how it would be to kiss Lucas. He feels jittery and breathless just thinking about it.

When rehearsals _finally_ end, he steels himself and makes his way toward Lucas, who’s packing his things slowly. _Okay, Eliott, be smooth, be confident._

“I, um, am going to get dinner at this place nearby and I waswonderingifyouwouldliketocome?”

_Damn it._

Lucas understandably looks confused, adorably so, and says “sorry, what was that?”

Eliott hurries to clarify, feeling more and more like an absolute idiot as he rambles on. Lucas interrupts him, however, and agrees to go to dinner. Eliott stands there stunned, feeling his own large smile form as he sees Lucas’s shy one.

* * *

 

_He’s so in love._

Lucas is funny, charismatic, and so, so chaotic, and it makes Eliott’s heart feel like it’s about to burst with fondness. They’ve been talking non-stop for almost two hours already and Eliott feels like he could do this for the rest of the night. He has an inkling that Lucas is enjoying himself too.

His phone buzzes distractedly and his mood sinks slightly as he sees an incoming call from Lucille. This always happens, she somehow seems to just _know_ when Eliott is moving on and tries to mess it up. Eliott knows deep down it’s unfair to think that about her, but he finds himself irritated at all things distracting him from Lucas. He simply flips his phone over, ready to continue his conversation with Lucas, but is stopped by the concerned look on Lucas’s face.

“Do you need to get that?”

He shakes his head, but Lucas presses so he relents. “It’s my ex. She’s been bothering me lately about getting back together.”

And Lucas, beautiful, surprising Lucas sincerely says, “Oh, I’m sorry.”

“Why are you sorry?”

Lucas pauses for a moment, before looking intently at Eliott and softly saying, “you look sad, so I’m sorry if the breakup is hard.”

Eliott feels his eyes water just a bit at Lucas’s consideration, but no, this won’t do. He cannot have Lucas thinking that he wants to be with Lucille.

“I’m not sad,” he says, hoping his eyes are conveying his sincerity. “We weren’t good for each other for awhile, but it was only when I said I wanted to break up because I liked someone else that she started getting really controlling.”

He hopes Lucas gets the hint, god he really hopes he does. And Lucas may have, given the sudden glint in his eyes, but they’re interrupted by the waitress asking for their order. They don’t mention the subject again, but Eliott _knows_ that Lucas feels something too.

He walks Lucas home, feeling his stomach tighten every time his hand brushes against Lucas’s. _Just take his hand_ , he scolds himself.

They make it to Lucas’s coloc and Lucas is looking up at him, blue eyes glimmering in the lamplight. Eliott almost sighs out loud at how beautiful he is and wonders if he should kiss him. He doesn’t get the chance to because Manon is suddenly there speaking to them. She invites him inside, but no, he doesn’t think he could handle being in Lucas’s room right now and bids them both goodnight. He feels his back tingling with the weight of Lucas’s stare as he walks away.

* * *

 

He skips excitedly to the theater for rehearsals, ready to see Lucas again. He’s here early, wanting to get the task Alex asked him to do over with so he could greet Lucas as soon as possible.

Alex asked him to do a favor for his friend Charles, who apparently is in love with Manon. He finds Manon’s dressing room and fishes around in his bag for the rose Alex gave him earlier. Alex has been the one leaving these roses normally, but today he begged Eliott to do it since Emma asked Alex over and they were, in his words, “so gonna do it. Eliott man, you gotta do this favor for me pleaseeee.”

Eliott thinks it’s a little weird that this Charles dude is having other people leaving flowers for his love, but does it anyway, placing the rose on the vanity. He speeds out of there, ready to meet Lucas.

Lucas, however, doesn’t speak to him all evening, and brushes him off when Eliott tries to speak to him.

* * *

 

Lucas has been giving him the cold shoulder for _two weeks_ now and Eliott doesn’t know where he went wrong. He feels so hurt but he doesn’t know how to ask Lucas what happened. _What if he imagined Lucas’s interest? It wouldn’t be the first time you imagined things_ , his head insidiously says.

Alex and Sofiane have been trying and failing to lift Eliott’s spirits, but he stays resolutely depressed. He’s sitting on Sofiane’s couch now, probably looking like the world’s ended.

“Okay that’s it.” Eliott looks up confusedly at the hard voice and it’s Alex who’s standing there, face like a thundercloud.

“Get up and go put something decent on.”

Eliott remains in his seat, blinking slowly at Alex. “We’re going to a party. Get dressed.”

“No,” he says, as he sinks further into the couch, lips forming into a pout.

“Eliott I swear to god if you aren’t ready in ten minutes, I’m throwing you over my shoulder and carrying you there. You can’t keep moping, man. It’s not healthy.”

He starts to retort, but he’s interrupted by Sofiane. “He’s right, Eliott. It’s been weeks, you really do need to get out and have some fun.”

“I can’t,” he says hoarsely. “What if Lucas is there?”

“Then he’ll be there and you’ll just have to ignore him then won’t you, just like he’s been doing to you.”

Eliott almost wants to smile at Alex’s protective tone, but he knows he won’t be able to ignore Lucas. He never could.

Thirty minutes later, he’s being pushed out the apartment, Sofiane and Alex on either side of him. He’s out-numbered, so he guesses he’s going to party. He groans though when he sees it’s at chloé’s house again. She’s another one that clings to Lucas too much, he thinks with irritation.

The party is in full swing, most people already drunk, and Eliott forces himself to not look for Lucas immediately. Alex hands him a beer and he takes a swing of it to have something to do with his hands. He feels so out of place. At that moment, he sees Manon coming out of a room, phone in hand and eyes rimmed with red. She comes to him and Alex, who hesitantly asks, “hey Manon, is everything alright?”

She shakes her hand and her bottom lip wobbles, and Eliott feels sorry for her. He really does like her as a friend, so he bumps his shoulder gently against hers in encouragement.

Manon takes a deep breath. “Charles and I fought just now on the phone,” she says lowly. “I asked why he keeps sending me roses but still keeps going out with other people. One thing led to another, and we both said some things that….” She stops, sniffling. Eliott puts an arm around her to comfort her.

“It’ll be okay,” he says, unsure of how else to make her feel better. She nods, and he sees her text Emma that she needs her.

He looks up to see Emma walking their way, her face concerned, but he also sees….

Lucas, dancing with what he believes is one of the guys from the tech team, James he thinks. His neck is suddenly hot and he’s seeing red.

Lucas looks more than little tipsy and he’s grinding against James, who is being very handsy right now, daring to slide one of his hands underneath Lucas’s shirt. _That’s it_ , he thinks, ready to storm his way over there and do _what_ , he doesn’t know.

But Lucas darts off before he can get over there, heading upstairs. Eliott decides that having a confrontation with James is probably not the best idea right now and instead follows Lucas. He sees Lucas go into the bathroom and slam the door, and so he stands outside, unsure if he should actually knock. He suddenly remembers that Lucas hasn’t spoken to him for weeks and the insecurity creeps back in as he flounders outside the door.

His concern for Lucas wins out, however, because he knocks on the door, ignoring Lucas’s voice that someone is in here. Lucas opens the door, face twisted in irritation, but morphs into shock at the sight of Eliott. Just as quickly, his face hardens.

“What do you want?”

Lucas’s voice is hard and Eliott wants to shrink at the sound of it. “I saw you rush out…and wanted to make sure you were okay.”

He hates how weak his voice sounds, but dammit, he’s going to make Lucas talk to him. Lucas huffs and turns around to the sink, before saying, ““Well, as you can see, I’m fine. I don’t need a babysitter.”

 _Why must he be a brat right now?_ Eliott normally finds Lucas’s brattiness very cute and kinda hot, but now is not the time.

Lucas surprises him though by saying, “you can go now, I’m sure Manon is looking for you.”

_What??_

Lucas has always been an enigma to Eliott, but now he feels completely lost. He knows he must look confused but Lucas doesn’t clarify, his face looking oddly hurt.

“Anyway, I gotta get back to the party.”

Eliott feels the previous jealousy rush back in, despite his attempts to control it. “To your little blond friend?”

He’s reminded of the image of the guy’s hand trailing suggestively up Lucas’s stomach, lifting his shirt to reveal smooth, tan skin, whilst nosing against Lucas’s neck. He feels his fist clench at the memory.

“Didn’t know you and James were so close.” Normally he’d feel so embarrassed to be so blatantly jealous, but he’s already confirmed that he has no self-control when it comes to Lucas.

Lucas, being the brat he is, sarcastically says, “what, you don’t like my suitor, Mr. Phantom?”

Eliott is jealous, angry, and so, so tired. “No, I don’t,” he says.

Lucas clearly wasn’t expecting this answer, his face slack and blue eyes wide.

Eliott sighs. _This has got to be cleared up._ “We need to talk.”

He steps further into the bathroom, closing the door. “Why have you been avoiding me? I thought we…had a good time at dinner?”

“I thought we did too,” Lucas responds huffily.

Eliott is confused. “Then what is the problem, Lucas?” _Why are you being so infuriating, can’t you see how much I want you?_

Lucas pauses for what seems like forever before clarifying, “I thought we had a good time too. But you should’ve told me about your crush.”

Eliott feels his stomach drop. _Oh no, he knows. He knows everything and how long I’ve wanted him and now he’s creeped out. Did Alex tell him? Did Sofiane? Did he accidently slip something to Manon and she told him?_

“Look, if you wanted to find out more about Manon, you could’ve just asked me, you know? You didn’t have to go through this whole dinner thing like it was a dat-like it was something else,” Lucas says.

_What? Lucas, what?_

Nothing is making sense right now and he tells Lucas so, only for him to say, “I saw you leave Manon’s dressing room the other day. I know that she’s been receiving roses from an admirer.”

He’s still confused and he lets out a laugh at the thought of being Manon’s admirer. She’s nice, but no. He sees Lucas cross his arms, a fragile, yet defensive look crossing his face. And then it clicks.

He feels the urgent need to clarify that he absolutely is not Manon’s admirer. _How could he even think that? Does he not know that he is the only one in his eyes? That he would do anything, anything for Lucas?_

“I don’t like Manon,” he says firmly, inching closer to Lucas. Lucas has a deer in the headlights look about him now as Eliott gets closer.

“Okay,” Lucas whispers.

“I don’t like her,” Eliott repeats. He sees Lucas glance down to his lips and that’s it.

He kisses Lucas hard, much harder than he planned to, but it was happening and oh god, Lucas is responding just as fervently. He feels like he should be embarrassed by how desperate he seems right now, but he can’t bring himself to care. All he feels is Lucas, his warm, soft mouth, the feel of his strong legs wrapped around his waist, the feel of his fingers in his hair.

They’re rudely interrupted by some girls rushing in to vomit, and he and Lucas rush out of the bathroom. They stare at each other for a second, chests heaving, when Manon shows up and Lucas urgently asks where Yann is. Eliott sees Manon looking at them both, suspicion dawning in her eyes, before telling Lucas. Lucas darts off quickly, leaving Eliott to deal with Manon’s questioning stare.

“Not right now,” he whispers, leaving to find Sofiane. When Sofiane sees him, his eyebrows immediately rise to his hairline, mouth opening undoubtedly to ask why Eliott looks fucked out.

He raises a hand to stop Sofiane. “Let’s go home, please?” He asks imploringly. Sofiane, bless him, nods and texts Alex that they’re leaving.

“You’re staying at my place though,” Sofiane says, clearly concerned with the conflicting emotions Eliott knows are all over his face right now.

He simply nods, following him outside, enjoying the rain on his over-heated skin.

He _kissed_ Lucas. Lucas _kissed_ him back. Lucas moaned and gripped his hair and kissed him passionately, and it was so wonderful, better than he had ever imagined.

 _Lucas also ran off though_ , his mind reminds him. _Maybe he was just overwhelmed and got nervous_ , he internally argues back. He determinedly decided he was going to talk to Lucas at the next rehearsal. He wasn’t going to let Lucas avoid him again.

Sofiane suggested he ask Daphné for Lucas’s number, which she gave quickly. He stares at his phone, however, not knowing what to text Lucas. He has so many things to say. Okay, maybe he should wait to talk to Lucas in person, then.

* * *

 

He resolutely decides that’s what he’s going to do, and at the next rehearsal, he plans to do just that. But Lucas, beautiful, unexpected Lucas, surprises him once again.

“Hey, do you mind if I grab Eliott for a minute? There’s some things we need to work on.” Lucas interrupts Manon and Daphné and Eliott can only gape and nod wordlessly.

His shy Lucas is being quite brave now, saying, ““So look, I wanted to apologize for um, running out so quickly last time.”

Eliott immediately begins to shake his head. _No, you have absolutely nothing to apologize for._

Lucas doesn’t let him speak, however, and continues. “It was my first kiss…with a guy and so I, uh was a little overwhelmed and I tend to run away from things when I get nervous.” Lucas looks a little sheepish and the shyness has come back, making him look at Eliott from beneath his eyelashes. Eliott wants to simultaneously coo at his cuteness and kiss the living daylights out of him.

 _He said you’re his first_ , his mind reminds him, and he feels a unreasonable amount of pride swell up.

Lucas surprises him once again. I’d like to do dinner or something again sometime, if you’d like. You know, to apologize uh, properly.”

The room feels very hot right now and he feels shy, but recovers. “I’d like that, Lucas.”

“Great, so just let me know when’s a good time for you. You can text me. I know Daphné gave you my number, after all,” Lucas says with a smirk before dashing off. Eliott feels his face light on fire. _That cheeky brat._

* * *

 

He’s currently standing in front of his closet freaking out, Sofiane and Alex looking on amusedly. “Guys! You’re supposed to help me. What am I supposed to wear?” He knows he’s whining, but he has a date with Lucas and his friends are being real jerks right now.

“Just go naked,” Alex (un)helpfully suggests. “You’re hot as hell, so if Lucas doesn’t jump you when you’re naked, then I’m sorry to say he probably won’t ever.”

“That doesn’t help Alex!” Eliott yells, face burning with the thought of Lucas jumping him. _Not that he’d mind or anything…_

“Wear something casual and put on the leather jacket,” Sofiane yells from the kitchen. “You definitely look good in that!”

Eliott rushes to put those on, realizing that he needs to get to Lucas’s coloc soon. He thanks Sofiane as he leaves, flipping Alex off when he throws a condom wrapper at him.

He finds himself in front of the coloc, and he wipes his sweaty palms on his jeans before knocking on the door. It opens four long seconds later, revealing a very nicely dressed, and _oh, fuck me he thinks_ , and very handsome Lucas. He swallows hard and gets a little satisfaction that Lucas seems to be just as speechless by Eliott as he is by Lucas.

Despite his nervousness, conversation flows easily with Lucas and he delights in Lucas’s surprised wonder at Eliott having taken him to the opera.

* * *

 

He really tries to focus on the show, he really does. But. Lucas is right there, and he smells so good, and he’s so very handsome. Eliott places a hand on Lucas’s thigh, needing to have some sort of contact with him, but Lucas soon hurriedly states that he needs to go to the bathroom. Eliott sits there, and the longer he sits there waiting, the more he realizes that he has no idea what’s going on in this opera, and he really doesn’t care.

He gets up, whispering apologies to the people he squeezes past in the row, and makes his way to the bathroom. It’s blissfully empty, with only Lucas in there currently washing his hands. Eliott doesn’t know what comes over him really, but Lucas is looking at him intensely while looking like _that,_ and suddenly Eliott finds himself pulling Lucas into a stall and kissing him. He doesn’t know what he’s saying, but he does know that Lucas is moaning and it’s the hottest thing he’s ever heard. He kisses him hard once more, before they’re running out of the theater, giggling childishly at the shocked look they get from the doorman.

* * *

 

They go to Eliott’s place and he feels the nervousness creep up again. But Lucas is standing in front of him, and he brings a gentle hand to Eliott’s face before kissing him softly. He pulls away and trails his hand down his neck, leaving it to rest on his chest, and Eliott feels like it’s branded him.

The curtains are slightly open, dowsing the room with the faint light from the street lamps. Lucas is looking up at him intently, and he is so, so lovely. Eliott kisses him again and it feels dreamlike, being with Lucas. He faintly notices Lucas taking his clothes off and himself doing the same to Lucas, as he’s very caught up in the feel of Lucas mouthing along his neck.

Later on, when he’s pushed into Lucas’s heat, he feels overcome and shuts his eyes tightly. He feels Lucas wrap his arms around his neck and hears an urgently whispered, “move, Eliott.” And he loses himself to the sensation that is Lucas, feeling as though he’s burning up from within.

* * *

 

He wakes to Lucas’s face staring down from where he’s propped up on Eliott’s chest. He looks decidedly love-struck, which makes Eliott’s insides squirm happily. Lucas attempts to get up, _but oh no, that will not do_ , and Eliott keeps a firm hold around Lucas’s warm waist. Lucas finally wriggles himself free to look at his phone and Eliott allows himself the indulgence of looking at a nude Lucas. His eyes trace the wild hair, down the endless amounts of soft, tanned skin, the defined muscles, and lower still, which Lucas has quite unfairly, in Eliott’s opinion, covered with a sheet.

“You’re beautiful,” he blurts out.

Lucas snaps his eyes towards him and a blush fans prettily across his face. “Shut up, I am not. You must be confusing me with yourself,” he brattily says.

 _Well, now._ Eliott grabs Lucas and places himself on top, balancing his weight on his forearms rather than on Lucas. He takes in the beautiful image of a rumpled Lucas beneath him, blue eyes wide and lips gently parted.

“You’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen. Everything about you brings so much…light.”

He watches as a pleased grin grows on Lucas’s face, his face flushing happily, _and he is going to keep him looking like this if it’s the last thing he does,_ Eliott thinks _._

Lucas’s buzzing phone interrupts the moment and Eliott flops off of him with a sigh. Lucas giggles at his dramatics before his mood abruptly changes as he looks at his phone. His face grows more upset by the second and Eliott feels his heart clench at the sight.

He pulls Lucas to his chest and Lucas finally breaks down and tells him about his mom and his family.

“It’s just been so hard,” Lucas says as he cries softly, “I don’t know what to do and my dad isn’t around to help…I just wish everything was normal.”

Eliott feels his heart break in two at Lucas’s pain and at his words. _Normal. He wants normal._

Eliott can feel his throat closing up at this, but continues to rub soothing circles on Lucas’s back. Lucas eventually pulls back, wiping his eyes, and looking at Eliott. “I should go visit my mom,” he says. Eliott nods, he doesn’t think he can speak right now.

Lucas puts his clothes back on and Eliott can only watch helplessly, not knowing how to articulate the gaping wound he feels growing in his chest. They reach the door and Lucas looks a little uncertain, shifting around. He looks down briefly and then looks up at Eliott, hesitant and _still so lovely._ “Thank you, um, for last night. I had a good time,” Lucas says. “I’ll see you Monday?”

He stands there looking unsure, and Eliott so badly wants to reassure him, but he can only bring himself to nod. Lucas turns to leave, and Eliott desperately needs to convey his feelings somehow. He pulls Lucas back and kisses him hard, trying not to cry and beg Lucas to stay. He lets him go, trailing his hand through Lucas’s soft hair and down his face. “Goodbye, Lucas.”

He leaves, and when the door shuts, Eliott cries harder than he can ever remember.

* * *

 

He’s been curled up in his bed for hours, his mind blissfully blank after his breakdown. His phone buzzes and his heart twinges again when he sees that it’s Lucas.

**Hey, I visited my mom and she’s doing better now. Thanks for listening to me earlier, I’m sorry I just kinda sprung that on you. Thanks again for the date too, I’d like to do that again sometime.**

Eliott unwillingly feels himself tearing up again, but forces it down.

**I’m glad she’s doing alright. And never apologize for your feelings, it was totally fine.**

He’s breathing shallowly now. _You have to do it. You’re not good for him. He’s basically said so. Let him go._

**I had a good time too…but perhaps we are going too fast. It’s nothing to do with you, but I think I need some time. I’m sorry.**

He immediately throws his phone across the room, not caring if it breaks, and buries his face underneath the covers.

* * *

 

A depression hit, and Eliott finds himself unable to get out of bed. In a moment of weakness, he calls Lucille, feeling as though if he doesn’t tell _someone_ how he’s feeling, he will burst from the pain of it. Lucille, as always, knew how to talk to him, knew how to get his breathing to even out. And so when she asked to come over, Eliott let her.

He feels guilty laying on her lap, and her gently petting his hair, but he’s so miserable he can barely bring himself to care. She makes him food and cajoles him to eat, and he spills his heart out to her about Lucas.

Several days pass and he’s begun to think a little more clearly. _It’s going to hurt for awhile_ , he thinks. Maybe he should call Daphné and withdraw from the play. He knows that would be a shitty thing to do though, given the play was so soon.

His phone rings, and it’s Alex, calling for the sixteenth time. He resigns himself and answers, his voice hoarse. “Hello?”

“Eliott! Where have you been, man?” Alex’s voice is shrill and Eliott winces.

“I’ve been ill,” he says.

“Look. Sofiane has told me that something happened between you and Lucas.”

_How? Ugh Lucille. She must’ve told Sofiane, they still talked occasionally._

“That’s none of your business, Alex,” he says sternly.

“Eliott I swear to god, you’d better be at rehearsals tomorrow or Daphné will rip my balls off. Mine AND yours.”

Eliott knows he’s right, but he _can’t._ He can’t see Lucas right now and he tells Alex so.

“Look man, we don’t have time for this. I know this is hard for you or whatever, given your feelings and shit, but the performance is _this_ Saturday. Be.Here.Tomorrow.” He hangs up and Eliott flops onto his back, glaring at the ceiling.

* * *

 

He takes deep breaths the next day before entering the theater. _He can do this. Just work on your parts and don’t look at Lucas._

Daphné confronts him as soon as he walks in, giving him a scolding. He feels slightly guilty as he takes in her haggard appearance, as she clearly hadn’t been sleeping a lot lately. Imane is the one who rescues him, interrupting Daphné’s rant about how important this play is. “Come on Daph, leave the boy alone. He’s here now isn’t he?”

He shoots her a grateful look, running a hand through hair stressfully. He turns around and he’s met with Lucas already looking at him. He feels both pleased and tortured at the sight of Lucas, who looks just as lovely as ever, but tired, as though he hasn’t been sleeping. He tears his eyes away to look at Daphné and resolutely decides to focus on working.

He’s doing well, he thinks. Everything is chaotic with the rehearsal, and he barely has time to think outside of his lines and the choreography. Once again though, Lucas surprises him.

He’s backstage singing when he notices that rather than the usual girl who sits at the piano, it’s Lucas sitting there. He plays ‘Angel of Music’ and Eliott struggles to keep his singing even.

* * *

 

He’s so tired, but they’re running through the lair scene once more. Halfway through the scene, he feels eyes on him and he darts his gaze offstage. He’s surprised to see both Lucas and Alex looking at him, Alex looking determined and Lucas looking…miserable. When Lucas notices him looking, he looks hopeful and Eliott resigns himself to talking with him later.

He’s helping Emma clean up, purposefully dallying as he knows he has to talk to Lucas. He straightens up and steels himself to walk over to Lucas, when he sees James already standing there. _Nope._

Eliott marches over there, and he hears pieces of James’s confession. “Um. I really like you, Lucas.”

Lucas is standing there dumbfounded, looking like he wished to be anywhere else. Eliott comes up quietly behind him and places a hand on Lucas’s shoulder. He looks at James steadily, hoping his face is blank and not showing any murderous tendencies he might be feeling right now.

“Hey, Lucas, I believe you wanted to talk?”

Lucas looks up at him gratefully, and says, “Um yeah, yes. Sorry, James, uh we can talk another time?”

Eliott doesn’t wait for the fool to respond, guiding Lucas away to where they can talk.

They stand apart from each other and Eliott can barely look at Lucas, who looks a mixture of hurt and angry.

“What happened, Eliott? Everything was fine, great even, and then just out of nowhere, you decide to break things off?”

 “We-we were going too fast, Lucas, that’s all.”

Lucas looks like he’s made of stone. “And did you decide that before or after we spent the night together?”

Eliott feels as though he’s been slapped. “What? What, Lucas no! That’s not it at all!”

Lucas looks uncertain now and Eliott wants to gather him into his arms. “Then what was it?”

Eliott doesn’t know how to respond. How does he tell him? “It’s complicated, Lucas.”

He holds up a hand when he sees Lucas open up his mouth. “Please let me finish. It’s complicated…for reasons I’m not sure I’m ready to tell you about. I just felt it was going too fast and-“

 “And what?” Lucas looks stubborn, _he’s not going to let this go_ , he thinks.

“I’m not good for you, Lucas.”

“What…what does that even mean, Eliott? Of course you are.” Lucas sounds bewildered and he steps closer, his hand reaching out.

Eliott steps back quickly. “You don’t understand, Lucas. I…I’ve got darkness and a lot of shit, and this just isn’t going to be good for you.”

“You’re right about one thing, I don’t understand,” Lucas retorts, “But I do understand that I’m in lo”

“Eliott! There you are!”

_Oh shit, what’s she doing here?_

“Lucille, what’re you doing here?”

He sees understanding dawning on Lucas’s face, and he’s got to end this quickly.

Lucille ignores him and turns to Lucas. “Hi, I’m Lucille.”

Lucas hesitantly reaches out his hand to shake hers. Eliott feels entirely weirded out by this situation. “Lucas.”

Eliott watches as Lucille’s face morphs unpleasantly, her mouth opening to clearly say something offensive to Lucas. He knows she’s just trying to protect him, as she thinks Lucas hurt him.

“Lucille. You need to go. I don’t need a babysitter,” he says, his voice tight. _Don’t you dare say anything to him._

Lucille begins to argue with him and he hears Lucas faintly say he has to go before rushing out. He calls after him, but he’s too far.

“Lucille!” He says angrily. “I had it under control!”

“Really?” She laughs scathingly. “He put you into a depression for over a week, Eliott. And now you go running back to him? Eliott, come back to me. You know I’m the only one who can make you feel better. I’m the only one who knows what to do with you.”

And that hurts. “I’m a person Lucille, not a thing, not a child. I don’t need anyone to know what to do with me. Thank you for your help, but I won’t be asking for it anymore.”

He walks off without waiting for her to respond. He looks for Lucas outside the theater but he’s long gone. He goes home dejectedly, wondering how he was going to clear all of this up with Lucas. Lucas probably thinks Eliott used him and went back to his ex-girlfriend and _ugh._ Eliott puts his head in his hands.

Maybe he should put himself fully out there. Let Lucas see just how in love with him he is. And for how long he has been. Lucas might be creeped out, but at least he’d know the truth. Eliott resolutely pulls his phone towards him and opens up Instagram.

**We have a conversation to finish, don’t we? Meet me under the stage after rehearsals.**

He bites one of his nails as he waits for Lucas to respond.

He does a minute later with, **OK.**

Eliott breathes a sigh of relief.

* * *

 

He’s pacing back and forth under the stage, still in his Phantom costume, as he waits for Lucas. Lucas finally comes down, his steps hesitant on the stairs.

“Eliott, are you there?”

“Yes,” he says as he walks closer to the staircase. Lucas walks down slowly and Eliott’s fingers are twitching with the need to brush back a strand of hair that’s fallen across Lucas’s forehead.

It’s silent, but surprisingly, it’s Lucas who speaks first. “I saw your posts,” he starts hesitantly. “You’re a good artist.”

That wasn’t what Eliott was expecting to hear at all, but he feels a rush of pleasure at Lucas’s compliment.

“Thank you, Lucas,” he says softly. Lucas is shifting a little under his gaze, his eyes darting between the ground and Eliott’s face.

“I mean it though,” Eliott says, voice still soft. “You’re it for me Lucas. You have been for awhile now, and I’m sorry if I’ve caused you any pain.”

Lucas opens his mouth to speak, but Eliott interrupts. He has to get this out before he loses his nerve.

“I’m bipolar, Lucas.”

Lucas shuts his mouth, eyes wide.

Eliott hurriedly continues. “I’m not good for you, Lucas, that’s what I meant. I knew that, but I fell in love with you and got selfish. When I saw how upset you were with your mom though…I knew I couldn’t continue to be so selfish and that’s why I had to break it off.”

He plans to continue but Lucas steps forward, eyes blazing. “No,” he starts, voice strong.

“I cried because I needed my family, NOT because of my mom’s mental illness.”

Eliott opens his mouth to protest, but Lucas continues undeterred. “You are not selfish for wanting to love, Eliott. Don’t ever think that. You are good enough, and..” Lucas’s voice breaks a little.

“And I want to be good enough for you b-because I love you too,” Lucas says imploringly, blue eyes watery but determined.

Eliott feels his own eyes tear up. “But, Lucas, I will make you upset-“

“And I will make you upset,” Lucas interrupts. “We will both sometimes make each other upset. But I’d rather be upset because of you than not be with you at all.”

That does it for Eliott. He rushes forward and kisses Lucas, bringing his hands up to cup Lucas’s face. Lucas throws his arms around Eliott, kissing him just as deeply. Eliott feels so happy his heart might just burst out of his chest, and he kisses Lucas even more intensely.

“Uh, guys?”

Eliott and Lucas stop kissing, but Eliott keeps a hold on Lucas’s waist. It’s Yann and Alex who are standing there, both looking equal parts disgusted and proud.

“It’s time to go home, we’ve been looking for you everywhere,” Yann says.

“Yeah man, we’ve got to sleep. Big day tomorrow,” says Alex, eyes glinting playfully.

“We’re coming,” he says.

He notices Yann looking at Lucas questioningly, and Lucas only gives him a nod and a watery smile in response, which causes Yann’s shoulders to relax.

“Uh, hey man,” Yann says, “would you mind making sure Lucas gets home okay?”

Eliott sees this as Yann’s way of approving, and he smiles and nods. “I will.”

When they all say goodnight to the rest of the cast, Eliott feels Lucas’s warm hand envelop his own.

“Can I stay with you tonight,” Lucas asks softly.

 _As if he’d ever say no to Lucas._ “Of course,” he says, his face definitely sappy if Alex’s expression is anything to go by.

* * *

 

When they arrive at Eliott’s apartment, Lucas immediately strips them both to their boxers and leads him to Eliott’s bed. Eliott wraps his arms around Lucas as he snuggles underneath Eliott’s chin, laying a gentle kiss at the base of his neck. Eliott kisses the top of Lucas’s wild mane of hair in response. He sleeps deeply for the first time in days.

Eliott and Lucas barely had any more time to talk in the morning, as Daphné called them at the crack of dawn, yelling that they’d better be on time for a last run-through before hanging up. Eliott and Lucas stumble to the shower, taking much longer than they should’ve.

“Eliott!” Lucas laughs, “we have to get ready soon or we’ll be late and Daphné will murder us.”

“She wouldn’t dare kill the leads of the play,” he responds, continuing to kiss down the wet skin of Lucas’s neck. He kisses further down his chest, taking a nipple between his teeth, which causes Lucas to gasp and arch his back. He continues down Lucas’s stomach, looking up at Lucas with the question, the water hitting his face. He hears Lucas’s breath stutter adorably and Lucas nods rapidly, eyes very wide.

* * *

 

“Why are you late?!” Daphné yells at them, face livid. “I specifically called you so you wouldn’t be late!”

“Sorry Daph,” he says, “we got a little distracted.”

He sees Lucas blush bright red and smirks.

Imane comes to save the day from Daphné starting another rant. “Come on Daph, lots to do! Scold the boys later,” she winks at them both and leads her away.

“See you later,” Lucas says, standing on his tippy toes to plant a full kiss on Eliott’s mouth before running off. He stands there stunned.

That’s how Alex finds him a minute later, a dopey expression on his face.

“Gross. Be in love somewhere else, we’ve got work to do!”

* * *

 

Eliott doesn’t see Lucas for much time after the rehearsals, as he was whisked away to get his intensive makeup as the Phantom done.

He stares as his face in awe when the makeup artist is finished, completely amazed by how realistic the burns on the side of his face were. She fixes his mask in place just as Daphné walks in and she squeals.

“Ah! You look amazing! Okay, everyone's here. Are you ready?”

He feels butterflies in his stomach and he wonders if he might be sick. He wishes Lucas were here with him right now.

“Yeah, I’m ready,” he says, smiling tightly.

“Break a leg!”

He stands in position behind the stage, listening to the crowd out in the theater. A hand grabs his waist and he almost shrieks.

He spins around and it’s Lucas standing there, looking devastatingly handsome in his Raoul costume. He tells him so, and Lucas blushes.

“You look great too…really hot,” Lucas says, face turning a deeper red. Eliott is glad for the mask on half of his face because he’s feeling quite red in the face as well.

Lucas smirks like he knows how affected Eliott is anyway. “I just wanted to tell you you’ll do amazing.”

“As will you,” Eliott replies.

Lucas smiles and brushes his hand softly against Eliott’s bringing it up to his lips and and placing a kiss against Eliott’s knuckles. Eliott wonders what would happen if he were to pass out right now.

“See you later, Eliott.” Lucas gives him a cheeky smile and goes to his place. The music begins and everyone backstage is very serious as the curtain rises.

* * *

 

Eliott feels completely in character, even enjoying himself as the stalks around as the Phantom. He laughs backstage at the dance sequences and jokes, and particularly enjoys the little gulp Lucas does when he sees Eliott in his red Masquerade costume.

The audience seems to be enjoying all of the numbers, clapping and sighing, and laughing when needed.

Now at the finale, Lucas and Manon sing their way off stage.

_Share each day with me each night each morning._

Eliott allows himself one brief look at Lucas, who now is offstage but is looking at Eliott with a beautiful glimmer in his eyes.

Eliott, now alone on stage, sings:

_You alone can make my song take flight._

_It’s over now the Music of the Night._

He looks again at Lucas, who’s smiling proudly. Their story would continue.

FIN

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's the end! Thank you all so much for reading and for your kudos and words of encouragement! If you'd like a bonus scene, just leave a comment! x


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